Signs of Happiness
by Lakshyarahita
Summary: See the flock giggle, chuckle, and half-smirk -or whatever you call that thing Fang does- drabble by drabble. Fax!
1. Giggle

**AN: Woot!!! Third story!!! …I'm so proud of myself. (-sob- why is no one cheering? Cheer, my loyal fans, cheer!!! Sorry, I'm feeling a bit high right now… not that I use drugs or anything. Of course not. Nope. Not at all. Not. At. ALL.**

**Disclaimer: Don't own MR, or I would write myself into the story and spend all my free time tickling Fang. What do you mean, Fang doesn't seem like the 'ticklish type'? …Contrary to popular belief, Fang is very ticklish. In my world, at least.**

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**gig⋅gle **[**gig**-_uh_l] – (v.) to laugh in a silly, often high-pitched way

Now that Fang and Max are together, Nudge and Angel are always glancing at each other and giggling. They aren't laughing at the oldest Flock members – actually, they wanted Max and Fang to get together since, like, _forever._ It's more of that kind of giggle where you're just too happy about something to keep quiet. And Nudge and Angel _are_ happy, almost insanely so. Whenever Fang and Max sit together on the sofa or something, Nudge makes sure to just 'accidently' brush her hand against the back of the couch, and uses her power to feel their emotions. Angel, being a mind reader, picks up on it too, and now it's impossible for them to be anywhere _near _Max or Fang without letting loose a few giggles. Still don't get it? The girls are giggling because they're happy, and they're happy because they finally know what love feels like. Duh.

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**Sweet, exactly 150 words!!! Microsoft Word is magical. (Otherwise I'd have to actually **_**count. **_**Just thinking about it makes me shudder.)**

**Anyways, please review! And tell me what Sign of Happiness you want next. ^_^ Most of these will be Fax-centric, but I also heart Nudge x Gazzy (when they're older, obviously) and I'm cool with Iggy and Ella. What's it called? Eggy? Yeah, that.**


	2. Chuckle

**A/N: Wow, I am really bad at updating….why, yes, reviews do make me review faster! Thank you so much for asking!****Chuck-le – **(_v._) to laugh softly or amusedly, usually with satisfaction

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According to Max, a Fang-chuckle is basically the full-blown laugh of a normal person. She used to get so annoyed at him for chuckling when they were little, because he just so happened to do so right when she tripped over a pebble or something equally humiliating. But now, she doesn't really mind; obviously, if he chuckled at _her_ she would smack him, but in general, she's glad he's chuckling. It's sort of how she figured out she had, you know, feelings for him. Whenever he chuckles, no matter what he's chuckling at, she always feels laughing along with him.

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**Ohmigod, exactly 100 words. That's slight creepy….**

**Please review!!!! I have low self-confidence. ;)**


	3. HalfSmirk

**Wow, I actually finished this semi-quickly. Yay!**

**Half-Smirk— **(_n._) Really annoying, in Max's opinion

Math is her new archenemy. Max would be perfectly fine with its existence if she didn't have to _learn _it. However, she would like to graduate—hence her lonely 'GAH! I'm going to FAIL!' study session. Stupid math. Stupid unnecessarily complicated problem. She can see Fang in the living room, watching the news. Fang is smart. Fang can help her! (Her brain cells are too tired to form complex sentences.) She stares at him until he glances at her, feeling slightly uncomfortable. She pouts. He raises his eyebrows, then strolls over, leaning over her shoulder to see the problem. He…smells distractingly good, but she points at the problem anyways. He snags her pencil and starts doing the problem, his hand distractingly near hers, his hair distractingly shading his eyes, his lips distractingly quirked in a distracting half-smirk. His fingers trail against her shoulders distractingly as he turns away and strolls back to the couch. She looks at his neat, step-by-step work, but all she can hear is DISTRACTION. Max groans. She is _so _going to fail her math exam.

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**Irony: I wrote this in math class, which I have a solid A in. Poor Max... PLEASE review, I'm nearly completely out of ideas. Gracias!**


	4. Smile

**Major gracias for the reviews!!! I might actually update **_**before**_** two months, now…..nah, too much effort. **

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**Smile—**_(v.)_ to regard with pleasure or amusement (or maybe even love)

His hands are at her waist, and her hands are in his hair, and right now coherent thought is far beyond her reach. And they're kissing, and kissing, and her eyes are closed with pleasure. And now she's stepping back, just to start kissing him again, and now they're stumbling towards the bedroom door, and now she's up against the wall, and he's kissing her neck, her face, her ears, and her lips again, but now he's leaning back and she's thinking '_oh, please don't STOP'_ but he's questioning her with his eyes, and he's got that look like he'd love her no matter her answer, and then she starts _thinking_ again. All those old insecurities come flooding back, dousing her like ice cold water, but he's still got that _look_, and she can't help but nodding 'yes'. And now he's smiling, and she's falling in love all over again.

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**Wow, I feel all …tense, now. So many run-on sentences….and a perfect 150! Review or I'll feel unloved….and stuff.**


	5. Snort

**Gah, I'm not really sure if this one works….Oh! and by the way, sorry for the super long interval….I had some trouble with this one.

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**Snort—**(_v._) to sharply expel air in a harsh sound; to make a pig-like noise caused by excessive laughter

Iggy idly flipped through channels, all…two of them, and finally decided on the -slightly creepy- domestic violence documentary over 'Dancing with the Stars'. (He could see them dancing, so what was the point?) Has he listened to the bastard husband hit his wife, he tried, out of sheer boredom, to imagine them as Fang and Max; and burst out laughing. Fang…Fang, the love-struck emo bird-kid, even _attempting_ to hurt Max…. Iggy couldn't help it, he was laughing so hard he ended up snorting. Suddenly, over the sound of is laughter, he heard Max's footsteps coming towards him, and panicked. _'C'mon, Ig! Compose yourself before she starts her 'sexist pig'rant!' _

When Max walked in, Iggy was sitting with a perfectly grave face…listening to 'Dancing with the Stars'.

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**Meh, this one was iffy...well, either way, please review! Next up: Grin!**


	6. Grin

**So….(Review)……I was considering (Review) sending subliminal (Review) messages, but then (Review) I decided not (Review) to. Figured you guys would (Review) do it on your (REVIEW) own. -wink-**

**Grin— **(v.) Fang for 'I'm About to Jump for Joy and Spin You in Circles I'm THAT Happy'

Should she? Well, obviously she should, and she _wants _to, which should be reason enough to do it…but even though he's standing, you know, close enough to make her want to stab the butterflies in her stomach…his hand is quite far away. Really quite far away, indeed. So she shouldn't. Even though she really should, but still… she probably won't which means that she obviously shouldn't. So she won't. But then, and he's apparently got impeccable timing, he shifts closer to her, and she does what she just said she wouldn't – she grabs his hand. She glances at him out of the corner of her eye, and the grin that slowly spreads across his face fills her with butterflies.

**Gah, I should really update faster. Thank you for reviewing!!!!**


	7. Squeal

**Um, all I have left on my Magical List of Ideas is this one and one more, so if you don't want me to stop, PLEASE give me some more signs. And what character you want with it, but I might change it if I have to (sorry?).**

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**Squeal – **_(n.)_ A high-pitched sound of pleasure; common among young girls

As soon as Max stepped out of the dressing room, blushing with acute embarrassment, Nudge and Angel squealed in excitement. Loudly. Making everyone in the store turn and stare at them. See, this was why Max hated shopping. Especially for dresses. And _especially_ for dresses as short as this one. Sure, it was mid-thigh, but she still felt slightly over-exposed. And when you factored in the complete _lack of sleeves_, Max felt very uncomfortable indeed. "Like, OH MY GOSH, Max, when Fang sees you in this -" Nudge stopped mid-sentence as Max's hand covered her mouth. "He's soooo going to, like, blush, and do that adorable thing he does where he glances at you when he thinks you're not looking and then walks around with that smile he smiles when he doesn't want you to know he's smiling, for the rest of the day!" Angel finished the sentence enthusiastically, rivaling Nudge's overall word count, her dark-skinned sister nodding her head in profound agreement. Max blushed harder. He might act like that when everyone else was watching, but once they got back to their rooms… Max was imagining a different kind of smile. A...feral smile. A very feral smile, indeed.

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**Ha!!! Exactly 200 words!!! By the way, do you think I should have made this one into midget paragraphs instead of that giant mass? Do answer this question, it'll help me later on.**


	8. Snicker

**Yay!!! Thanks for the reviews! (Miracle of miracles, most of them made sense. -Just kidding.) Apparently, I must ask direct questions for responses, so…a new question after this drabble! Answer, please?**

**Snicker – **_(n.)_ a sound that shows amusement at another's foolishness; prevalent amongst young boys

Gazzy earnestly stuffed cookies into his mouth. It had been sheer luck that Max had forgotten to put the cookie jar back on the top shelf, and he was going to enjoy this while it lasted. "Hey, Fang?" Iggy called. Gazzy nearly choked on his cookie. Iggy was going to come into the kitchen! Unless… "Ooohhhh, Fang," moaned Gazzy in Max's voice. "You are _such_ a good kisser…." Somewhere in the hallway, Iggy made a strangled sound and raced away. Gazzy snickered between cookies. His plan had worked! Suddenly, he heard Max's (scary) sing-song voice behind him. "Oh, Gazzy…."

The eight-year-old grabbed the cookie jar and ran like the wind.

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**Score!!! 110 words! I'm feeling pretty good about myself….Oh, and here's the question! So, out of all these chapter-drabbles (including this one) which one is you guys' favorite? So far, of course.**


	9. Smirk

**Okay, so here are people's favorites:**

**Snicker (2)  
Smile (1)  
Squeal (1)**

**Wait, only four of you answered the question?! I'm so sad, I've forgotten how to write…oh, darn. I just remembered. Well, there goes my blackmail. ;) **

**A sequel to Squeal.

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**Smirk — **_(n.) _Fang's way of telling Max she's…'very pretty in a way hormonal teenager boys appreciate'

Fang couldn't help smirking as soon as Max stepped into his room. That dress…looked very, very good on her. He must have told her that with his eyes, because she shifted, making her curves more prominent, and a coy smile flitted across her face. _Yeah, I know. I figured you'd like it. _Just as suddenly as that expression came, it left as the door creaked open, Nudge's overly-curious face appearing behind it for a split second until she ran away. And now she was back to her embarrassed, blushing self, her moment of self-security gone. Well, he would just have to fix that by telling just how beautiful she really was…and exactly what he thought of that dress, and how much he liked the amount of skin she was exposing. In two seconds flat, he was leaning towards her, her back pressed to the wall, and his smirking mouth pressed against her flustered lips. Yet another reason why he preferred actions over words.

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**Oh. My. God. I can't believe I just wrote that. Although that was very…enjoyable…. Should I turn that into a oneshot? From Max's POV. And maybe Fang's…. But what would I title it? GAH! (Sorry for reposting this, but I skipped a word and it was bothering me.)**


	10. Laughter

**Next chapter! I decided to do something non-romantic with this one.**

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**Laughter – **_(n.)_ The purest form of happiness known to man; the byproduct of sensitive sides

"Iggy!" Angel shrieked. "Give me Celeste back!" She was racing down the hallway, chasing Iggy, and still had the breath to yell at him. Iggy spun sharply and dove into his room, but Angel followed him before he could close the door. "Uh, hey, Angel!" Iggy sputtered nervously, Celeste still gripped in his hands. Angel glared at him the way she had seen Max do it. "Iggy. Give. Me. The bear." She purposely let her voice go flat and calm, knowing it scared him more when Max did that. Iggy quickly held the bear above his head. "You'll never get her back ALIVE!!!" he shouted. She frowned at him. It was a stuffed bear, so it wasn't alive in the first place…. She shrugged, and returned to the problem at hand. She didn't want to mind-control him, and she couldn't fly up to his hands without breaking something in the room…. Her eyes focused on his unprotected sides.

Three seconds later, Iggy was on the floor laughing hysterically under the power of her Tickle Attack, and begging her to take Celeste back.

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**You like? By the way, I am COMPLETELY out of ideas, so do help me. *Insert Bambi Eyes here.***


	11. Snigger

**Totally forgot who gave me this idea, but love you anyways!!! A tribute to childhood Fax.

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**Snigger – **_(n.) _Quieter than the other Signs, but happy nonetheless

The Whitecoats brought a new experiment into Max's cell. She watched him cautiously from her cage, but he was sleeping – or unconscious. He had black hair, and tan skin, and he looked about her age, from what Max could tell. He woke up some time later, but he didn't say anything to her, so she kept quiet. You never knew who could be listening. They continued like this for a couple days, the silence changing from awkward to comfortable, until the Whitecoats finally came to take him for another test. The Erasers roughly hauled him out of his cage, and Max waited anxiously for his return. A while later, (the number of floor tiles was approximately 215) the Erasers threw him back into his cage, the Whitecoat standing in the doorway, nursing his hand and swearing. Max frowned and focused on the Whitecoat's hand…she could just barely make out the imprint of a set of teeth, and a little cut where the pointy tooth had left its mark. As soon as the Erasers left, she started sniggering – and stopped when the boy glanced at her. His eyes were dark, and they reminded her of the gaps between stars. When he smiled at her, ever so slowly, she beamed back.

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**So…think I should do more childhood ones? In the E-house and all that, or wherever else? And seriously, I am completely IDEALESS. And being idealess makes me sad. And sad authors makes sad fanfics. Such as Omega killing the flock and laughing about it, which I could totally do considering it's a sign of happiness. SO HELP ME. Love!**


	12. Cackle

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**Thank you for the ideas! I have re-found my creative-ness! And a new affinity for hyphens, but that's beside the point. Although I said I'd only write this if you guys made me sad … it felt like too much fun to **_**not **_**write. ;) On a side note, how many of you guys actually read my Author's Notes?

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**Cackle **– _(n.)_ The sound of EVIL – happy evil, but EVIL nonetheless

His mission was a sure success! He had caught the little dog, leaving a clear trail to lead the rest of that ignorant _Flock_ straight to his hide-out, where he was waiting with a bazooka. He had left the dog near the front of the cave – just close enough for those fools to try and make a dash for their stupid canine. And he had made sure not to underestimate his opponents – he gagged the little creature, and drugged him so that the little blond one wouldn't be able to read its mind and figure out his devious plot. And as they all rushed forward for their furry black lump, he would gun them all down from his perch – get this – _right behind the opening of the cave!!!_ Those suckers wouldn't know what hit them! And he would finally prove he was superior to that foolish Maximum Ride…and the Director would finally give him the motherly hug he'd always wanted! His moment of triumph was so close, he could almost taste it…

Omega started cackling in his sleep.

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**Lol, did you guys like it? I've always had a thing for teasing Omega….**


	13. Cheer

**Sorry for not updating for so long! Unfortunately, I am surprisingly lazy when I don't have constant reminders…such as reviews. Thank you for not, I don't know, being mean to me for taking so long? Because then we'd have to start a Fanfic Authors' Union, and that would take so much **_**work**_**….**

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**Cheer – **_(n.)_ A boisterous verbalization of appreciation; a noisy way to say 'Good job!'

Gazzy did his best to look strong and foreboding as the magician's top hat slid over his eyes. _Well, I'm only six, _he reasoned with himself. _Max said I'll grow into it._ He pushed the hat back and scanned his audience as he readied himself for his next trick. Nudge and Angel stared back at him earnestly; Iggy lay sprawled in the back listening to the proceedings. "For my next trick, I'd like to call my lovely little sister up to the shtage." He lisped slightly on the last word, his tongue slipping into the gap of his missing tooth. Angel beamed and bounced onto Iggy's bed, his impromptu stage, clutching a stuffed panda in her little hands. "Now, watch closely as I pull this quarter -" he held up a quarter he had snatched off the kitchen counter not too long ago – "out of Angel's ear!" Nudge clapped expectantly, while Iggy just smiled wider. The twelve-year-old had taught Gazzy the trick just last week. Gazzy slid the quarter into the cuff of the dress shirt he had…borrowed from Fang, and showed Nudge and Angel his empty palms. He then waved his arms dramatically and shouted some nonsense words – and pretended to pull the quarter out of Angel's ear. As he bowed, the girls burst into cheers and Iggy gave him a furtive thumbs-up. Gazzy blushed, and nearly burst with pride. Maybe now Iggy wouldn't mind when he noticed Gazzy, practicing for his next daring trick, had accidently broken all thirty-six eggs in the fridge…_. I guess I should run away now before he starts making dinner._

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**Meh, I don't like how it ended…I'm good with everything before the ending, but I wasn't sure what to do. And I sort of pretended Angel couldn't read minds – maybe she didn't like to violate others' privacy when she was a tot?**


	14. Shriek

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**This one will make sense if you've read **_**Fang**_** – but if you haven't I think it works as a stand-alone. There are many kinds of rings in the world. *wink***

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**Shriek**_** -** (n.) _A piercing sound signifying anything from surprise to joy

Max has always been the kind of girl who shrieks. Not the girly kind of shriek (it is Max, after all) but she shrieks the way, say, Iggy would turn pale and spin around if one were to poke him from behind. In such a scenario, Max would shriek and spin around, then accost the fool who poked her. It was just a way of reacting, more or less. But she stopped shrieking out loud after Iggy sneaked up behind her, and then he and Fang teased her about her reaction for the rest of the week. After that, she just started shrieking on the inside.

When Angel was kidnapped, she was shrieking on the inside.

When she saw Lissa kissing Fang, she was shrieking on the inside.

When Fang fell out of the sky because he _passed out in FREAKING MIDAIR_, she was definitely shrieking on the inside.

When Ari was dying, she was shrieking on the inside.

When she saw Fang again and the Flock was reunited, she was shrieking on the inside.

Every time someone found a new power, she was shrieking on the inside.

Whenever Fang smiled at her, she was shrieking on the inside.

Whenever Fang kissed her, she was (loudly) shrieking on the inside.

But when he finally gave her the ring she _knew_ he had, despite the fact that he had been 'hiding' it and had told Iggy on the phone that he was planning to give to her "when the time was right" in a nearly silent whisper…

She was shrieking yes. And not on the inside.

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**Oops, totally deviated. I was planning to make it relate to that ring Fang gives her in the book…but this one seemed cuter. What do you think of the …formatting… I did for this one? Wanted to take up space without actually having to **_**write**_**… ;)**


	15. Chortle

**This one's a family fic. I didn't put in a father, because…that would involve thought and explanation. Ow.

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**Chortle – **_(n.) _the sound babies make when you tickle their bellies

Val brushed her nose over her baby's belly and dropped a kiss on her bellybutton. "Ella-Bella," she sang as her small child chortled, clapping her hands at the sound of her mother's voice. "Oh, aren't _you _adorable!" she bumped her nose gently against Ella's gently, and felt a small pang as Ella chortled again, her blue eyes crinkling with delight, and reached for her face. She imagined slightly larger hands, still conspicuously small, reached for her skirt and tugging, and a little girl's voice begging to look at her baby sister and play with her. Her little Ella's grabbing hands brought Val back to reality, but even as she smiled at her youngest, and tugged her strands of hair out of her tiny grasp, she knew that half of her heart would always be wherever her brown-eyed baby was.

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Motherly love… poor Valencia. I wonder if Ella knew she had a missing sister? And do you guys call Valencia Martinez: Val, Valencia, or Dr. M? Or just Max's mom…?**


	16. Hoot

**Well, after this one there's only one more on my Magical List of Ideas. Give me a concept word or idea and/or the characters you want in it, and enjoy the warm fuzzy feeling helping strangers gives you. Just so you know, I won't go to your profile, deduce your name from your comments and stalk you. Because that is bad. And it is bad because the court told me it was. Hope you're reassured! ;)**

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**Hoot **– _(n.) _It's so funny, you can't breathe enough to laugh properly

Fang woke up and stretched, not noticing the string above his head until his hand hit it…and the bucket now hanging from his ceiling tipped over as the frayed string broke…and pink glitter poured onto his bed, sparkling cheekily against the black of his comforter. Fang blanched. He was going to kill those two – after a shower to erase any traces of glitter.

He washed his hair in the shower every day, because Max loved it clean.

"And then what?" Gazzy looked up earnestly at his (not so good) role model, eyes bright with mischief. Iggy grinned. "Pink hair-dye."

They hooted with laughter.

Nudge grinned in the hallway, a tape-recorder in hand, and a year's worth of blackmail under her control. Oh, silly boys, everyone knows you should fly to Canada before making plots involving pink and Fang.

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**Wow. This one was way out there. Please tell me what you think, because I'm pretty sure I wasn't thinking.**

**Okay, the next one is or can be about Dylan…you guys want one on him alone or with the Flock? And how many of you have read my profile/ other stories? Not that I'm, like, ordering you to, I'm just curious. And how many chapters should this fic be? And should I make a oneshot of Squeal and Smirk? And should I stop asking these questions in my author notes? I should, my bad.**


	17. Mmmm

**Hey! Sorry for not updating for, oh, **_**forever**_**, but 1) I seriously need more ideas, and 2) I started a new (chapter!) story, and I really need a beta. And, since I was stressing over that, I was pretty much not too good of a thinker…..sorry?**

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**Mmmm….. – **_(n.) _Can be translated as: "Oh, yes, I like this very much."

Max's eyes focused immediately on the mug of hot chocolate sitting on the kitchen table. It looked absolutely delectable. It was beckoning for her to come drink it, like this: "Drink me Max! I'm delicious!" But then, unfortunately, Max noticed a sticky note stuck to the side of the mug.

_Went out to buy some mini-marshmallows. Don't touch. –F_

Ugh, so it was Fang's hot chocolate. It was bad luck to steal anything of Fang's when he wasn't there…. Max's eyes lit up with realization. If Fang _gave_ it to her, of course, the curse was invalid (besides, she was pretty sure there was no curse, considering they had been seven when Fang told them (completely serious) that there was one; but hey, better safe than sorry).

When Fang returned from the store, about two minutes later, Max was waiting for him in the living room with a remarkably low-cut tank top on. (She had promised to wash the dishes in Iggy's stead for the rest of the week if he kept the kids occupied in the backyard.) As soon as Fang walked in, he just stood and stared, and the plastic shopping bag fell out of his hand.

"Max?" He said her name with a subtle incredulity; she totally expected that reaction (she'd probably feel insulted if he thought such promiscuous clothing was _normal_) but she pouted, as if she simply couldn't believe he was perplexed at all. "Fang…?" she stretched his name, walking towards him to pick up the bag, and threw it behind her, walking towards the mystified bird-boy. "Promise me you'll…" her voice dropped to a husky whisper as she ran one hand lightly across his chest, resting the other low on his stomach, and leaning up into him. "Give me something I want?"

Fang gulped noticeably. "Uh, sure…." Max winked at him, then sprang away, grabbing the marshmallows and rushing through the kitchen, snagging the hot chocolate on the way. "Thanks, Fang!" Max hollered over her shoulder to her stunned boyfriend.

Max sipped her hot chocolate; Fang mentally reviewed what had just happened. _Mmmm…_

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**Oops,this is super-long. I was thinking oneshot, instead of drabble….my bad? Oh, and could someone recommend a beta for me? And…still need more ideas. Yup yup.**


	18. Guffaw

**Well, I've got exams this week…so logically I should write more drabbles! Duh! (And this is the actual definition of guffaw. I looked it up. ;))

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**Guffaw** – _(n.)_ a loud, unrestrained burst of laughter

As soon as Nudge and Angel shoved Fang out of the bathroom, Gazzy described everything in a quick whisper, and Iggy burst out guffawing. Max smiled softly as she surveyed her Flock: Nudge was giggling hysterically behind Fang, leaning on Angel for support, who looked like she was going to collapse from laughter too. Gazzy was sprawled on the bed next to Iggy, shaking as he tried to suppress his laughter since Fang was glaring at him, while Iggy was writhing with laughter and looked like he was running out of oxygen. Oh, and Fang was in a pink dress. It was moments like this she treasured, when they were one happy, care-free family, bonding through laughter instead of life-or-death experiences.

Even if it was at Fang's expense. Max gave him a discreet thumbs-up – pink was _definitely _his color.

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Heheh. I think I like this one a lot. ;) Way to take one for the team, F-nick! **


	19. Incoherent Speech

**Yo! Made a poll. Please cast your votes now for America's NEXT. TOP. MODEL! (Juuust kidding. Although there is a poll.) **

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**Incoherent speech – **_(_n._) _What he does when he really really likes you; you're so happy, complete sentences are beyond your mental grasp

Finally! I found her alone. She's beautiful. Radiant. Too good for me, but I know I need to at least let her know how I feel. She's looking at me! Come on, say something! "Blarrgh!" _What_ the hell was THAT? Are you suicidal? Man up and say an actual word! In ENGLISH! "Hey." _There_ we go. Now you're in the right language. Now, upon that cute little pie hole of yours and say SOMETHING OF IMPORTANCE. That doesn't make you look like a _complete moron_ in front of your dream girl! "So…." Oh, yeah, _smooth._ You must be killing her with your witty comments. Mmhmm, she'll _totally _fall for you now. "There's something I want to tell you." Oh, could you be any _slower!_ Now she's going to get bored and just strut away. And you damn well deserve it, you numbskull! "I know I haven't known you that long…." Gee, point out the flaws before you even say what it is! "But, the truth is…." Come on, spit it out! You're wimpier than Fang, for crying out loud! He barely even talks and he still manages to land a girl!

"I love you, Akila." Well done, Total, well done. Now get your furry hinny out of here before she flat-out rejects you.

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**Not sure if it was clear, but this was mainly Total freaking out and mentally yelling at himself. And we all know Akila says yes, but I can make a sequel Sign if my dear reviewers wish it. ;)**


	20. Kiss

**SUMMER BREAK! YOSH!**

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**Kiss – **_(_n._) _Because Max knows this is the easiest way to thank Fang.

Fang always goes out of his way to buy Max a chocolate bar whenever they go grocery shopping. She saves until the end of the day, when it's Fang's watch, then goes and sits next to him and savors every single damn piece, and he knows she's laughing at him by the way her eyes sparkle when he can't take his of her lips and that _urge_ to lean over and lick the last traces of chocolate off her cheek. But he doesn't really mind, because it's time he and Max have all to themselves, and he's gotten many indirect kisses from the chunks of chocolate she always offers him, smirking that evil, goddamn _sexy_ smirk.

Of course, there was that one time he bought her a whole chocolate cake. The kisses definitely weren't indirect _that_ time.

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Meh…he should've licked her.


	21. Happy Tears

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**I'm so idealess, it's pitiful.**

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**Happy tears **- _(_n._) _like normal tears, only happier

It was the night after Angel had been rescued from Itex and Max had decided that they were far enough away to get some rest when Gazzy finally gave in to his emotions. After everyone had fallen into a tense sleep, he scooted over to Iggy, leaned against his chest, and started to cry. He could feel Iggy tense as he immediately awoke, but was silently thankful when Ig didn't say anything and just rubbed comforting circles on his back, letting him cry it all out. It was a few minutes before he could stop crying, and he leaned away from Iggy intent on scooting back to his own branch. He felt Iggy's hand gently grabbed his wrist, and stopped moving, looking back at Ig's concerned face. "Why are you crying? We saved Angel, right?" Iggy whispered, not wanting to wake the others. "So what's wrong, Gaz?" Gazzy raised Iggy's hand to his face so he could feel Gazzy's bashful smile as he whispered back, "Nothing. Those were happy tears."

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**Aww. That was cute, wasn't it? So if you want anything more like that, you better send me ideas. Please? *bambi eyes***


	22. Sing

**A quick AU, because I like the word but couldn't imagine Max bursting into song after Fang kisses her. And unless you want Celeste to mysteriously come to life and rap, I couldn't think of a way to use the other Flock members.

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**Sing**_** – **__(_v._) _Because what you're feeling is too beautiful to not share

Max paced backstage, too nervous to stop yanking at her curled extensions, despite her make-up artist's constant admonishing. _Well, gee, if the freaking extensions come out the show can still go on,_ Max snarled mentally. _But considering I'm too freaked out right now to freaking SING I consider the condition of my fake hair the _least_ of my problems._ Her facial expression must have conveyed at least a fraction of her current venom, because the stylist abruptly stopped talking and moved away. Max reached the end of the short backstage and pivoted on her heel…and ran into a hard mass of black.

She stumbled backwards and nearly fell when strong hands grabbed her arms and pulled her towards him. She leaned into his comforting warmth, fingers tugging lightly at the hem of his black shirt – which matched his black pants, because apparently he had some issues with other colors – and finally looked up at her boyfriend's smirking face. She would scold him for mocking her nervousness with that annoyingly cute half-smile of his, but his eyes…somehow he told her that he believed in her no matter what with just one look.

She smiled tiredly. Stressing sure took a lot of energy. "Hey, Fang." He leaned down and rested his forehead against hers. "Hey, Max."

"Remind me why I decided to become a singer?"

Fang smirked wider, and winked. "Because I said you should, and I'm always right."

Her lips twitched, but her fingers still played with the hem of his shirt, revealing her anxiousness.

"Max…" he slung his arms onto her shoulders, and tilted his head so their foreheads bumped. "Just think of me when you sing, alright? Everything will be fine."

.:.:.

J.J. jumped into the passenger seat of her best friend's convertible, ignoring Lissa's mock glare. "That concert was amazing, wasn't it?"

Lissa nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah! I've bought all of the _Maximum Ride_ CDs, but I had no idea she'd be so amazing in real life!"

J.J. grinned back. "I heard that she does that dedication thing –you know, when she's said she's singing for someone very special to her at the very beginning - every concert. Who do you think her special someone is?"

Lissa shrugged, looking back while attempting to reverse her precious car. "I dunno, but she must really really love him."

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And I made it extra long as an apology for not updating. Forgiven?**


	23. Insomnia

**Yo. So, I have a new story – that actually has consecutive chapters! – but I'm one of those easily distracted people who can only work on one story at a time. So, SoH will end with 30 chapters. Sorry, but as soon as I finish this I'll post the new one! (Please don't eat me.)**

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**Insomnia**_** – **__(_n._) _Sleep? You kidding? If I didn't know you were joking, I'd think you're on drugs….

Max rolled on top of him, straddling his hips, and grinned evilly when Fang yelped with surprise. As she leaned down slowly to kiss him, teasing him with feather-light kisses on his forehead, the bright red of the alarm clock caught her eye before Fang pulled her down for some real kissing. It was 2:18 in the morning and they were both going to be brain-dead in the morning…but really, who needs sleep when you can have Fang?

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Heheh, let's pretend that wasn't really short.


	24. Beam

****

Psssh, me? Update slow? I UPDATE SWIFT LIKE THE NINJA!

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Beam-_(_n._) _to smile so brightly people wonder if you've swallowed a flashlight

Max and Fang's facial expressions run in parallels. Sure, Fang's expressions may be more subdued, but they are feeling the same emotions with the same intensity; the only way to truly understand what they're feeling is to see them together. You might think Max overreacts, you might think Fang under reacts, but when they're together, everything just clicks.

For example, anger. Where Max hollers, Fang glares in stony silence. Equally scary; either your eardrums burst or you melt into a pile of frightened mush.

And sadness. Where Max cries, Fang isolates himself and waits for it to rain.

Frustration. Max punches a tree, Fang punches a wall. (Okay, they react the same here…)

Panic. Max will try to fight back immediately, using her panic to strengthen her, while Fang will freeze and try to take in his surroundings and calm down before doing anything.

Nervousness. Max will take deep breaths to center herself. Fang will just pretend he's not nervous and act like his usual smooth self.

And, of course, happiness. When Max beams, Fang just grins broadly and hugs her, glad that she's with him, that she's happy…that she said 'yes'.

Because that's all they really want – to be together, for as long as they live. In sickness, in health, through the good times and the bad, they want to face everything in their screwed-up lives together. So honestly, I don't see why expected her to do anything _other_ than beam at him when he proposed. What else was she gonna do, say 'no'? Silly Fang.

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**I feel so…abstract about this. Good? Bad? Could've been better?**


	25. Sigh

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Quick sequel to Insomnia, because someone requested it.

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**Sigh**_– (_n._) _you are no longer jealous of the main characters in rom-coms…because you're as happy as they are. And not fictional. Well, usually not fictional.

Fang rolled onto his side and draped a possessive arm around Max's waist. He blearily opened an eye and glanced at the alarm clock on the nightstand as Max pressed herself against his chest, absorbing his warmth. It read 12:45 pm….meaning it was way past noon. Fang considered getting out of bed – after all, the Flock had nicely let them sleep in this long, no need to push their luck – but then Max drowsily opened her eyes, tangled her legs with his, and drifted back to sleep. They sighed in unison, perfectly content. _Well, _Fang reasoned, as he closed his eyes and buried his face in her hair, _we can always get up tomorrow instead._

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**By the way, do you guys want me to respond to your reviews? I read them all and treasure them, of course.**


	26. Breathe Easy

**I can't believe this fic is almost done…it's also my first collection of drabbles! Btw, I posted a new oneshot, so if you guys want to, you can read it… (really, who's gonna stop you? Malware?)**

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**Breathe easy **_– (_v._) _because now you're here, to keep me safe and shelter me from pain

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She tossed and turned, her breathing ragged, fighting against the sheets that twisted around her legs and suffocated her. She was whimpered, would probably scream and jolt awake if her nightmare continued, sweating, her face a mask of hurt and fear. One leg lashed out and hit the wall with a thud, and she blearily opened her eyes in response to the dull pain, still too groggy to tell what was reality and what was dark fantasy. And then he was sliding open her window, his dark wings keeping him aloft until he slid through the portal and to her side, pulling her into his arms and whispering sweet nothings to calm her down. She smiled faintly and curling towards him, fingers grabbing his shirt and refusing to let go as his wings opened wider and enclosed both of them in their black warmth. If she was awake enough to be coherent, she would've figured out that he had heard her hit the wall and had come running, flying, to be her savior, but all that truly mattered to her was that she could now breathe easy. No matter what the real world held for them, the way their future would lead them, he would always keep her safe from the terrors of the night.

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…**Aww. That one felt really sweet. What do you guys think?**


	27. Wink

**Fang and Iggy brotherly bonding moment!**

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****Wink** – _(_n._) _Similar to the Male Nod of Acknowledgement, because words are just too mushy

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Iggy glanced up automatically as he heard the door to his and Fang's room close, forgetting he couldn't actually see. He paused his book-tape as he heard Fang's even breathing and the rustling of his shirt as he slumped against the closed door.

"What's up?" iggy questioned, pulling the ear buds away from his head.

"Max," Fang nearly groaned, his voice a strange mix of passion and longing and embarrassment.

Iggy chuckled as he heard a thump, guessing that Fang had tilted his head back against the door. "What happened? Details, man, details."

"Max. Towel. In the hallway. God…" Fang's voice sounded oddly strangled, and Iggy could only imagine what Fang's face looked like as he struggled to keep his mental images under control.

Iggy decided to give his role as Fang's best friend priority over his role as Max's brother – she could protect herself from a horny guy, no problem. Of course she might not _want_ to protect herself from a horny Fang, but that's a different story. "So? Did she see you? Did she jump you and invite her to her room?"

Fang simply growled at him for the last one.

Iggy blinked as he was hit with a new train of thought, and voiced it cautiously, hoping it wasn't true. If it was, he would be very glad if Fang kept details to a minimum about his experience. "Was she…even wearing the towel?"

"Yes!" Iggy heard Fang's head move and chuckled in relief as he sensed the Death Glare he was the target of.

"Thank god. Okay, so what happened?" He leaned forward as best he could, still sprawled across his bed, and fluttered his eyelashes like a girl. A very obnoxious, gossipy girl.

"Nothing…" Fang's voice got softer, and his head tilted downwards, so Iggy stopped his eyelash-fluttering, knowing Fang was about to reveal his emotions. "It's just, she's really pretty. She wouldn't believe me if I told her, but she is."

Iggy heard everything Fang wasn't saying; how he wanted to tell her, to be there next to her every day so he could watch her and hear her laugh, and be able to tell her how much he loved her without her freaking out, to be her everything, and to have her trust him when he revealed his heart.

And Iggy knew that Fang was the right guy for Max, the only one who could handle her bossy attitude, the only one who she never bossed around, the source of all her security, and the bane of all her fears. But he couldn't say all that out loud without sounding like a sap – or worse, like _Fang_ – so he waited until his brother looked back up at him and winked.

Because a wink said everything he needed to say, and everything Fang needed to hear. _Go for it. Tell her. She loves you._

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**I'm not sure I'm happy with what the wink meant...**


	28. Gasp

**Ah, I guess I'm in a bit of an Iggy-fix right now. Oh well, he's awesome enough. :)**

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**Gasp **– _(_v._) _Oh…oh, my…

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Iggy strained his ears to hear the sound of the box snapping open over the sound of his heart pounding.

He heard a little gasp as she –and he was totally guessing here, which really sucked- looked at the tiny bracelet he had gotten her.

_A gasp! What the hell did that mean? Was a gasp of, like, happiness…or of total disgust? Ohmygosh, it was totally disgust wasn't it! She hates it!_

He scratched the back of his head nervously, opened his mouth, and winced when a little squeak fell out.

He cleared his throat and tried again. "Yeah…so, I saw it – well, I didn't really _see_ it, but Fang gave it to me to hold when we were buying something for Max – well, I wasn't buying anything for Max, Fang was – and I really liked the way it felt, and the silver looked really nice, or felt really nice, and stuff- and…well, I saw it, and I thought of you."

There was a moment of complete silence as Iggy slowly turned redder and redder.

"So…" he said finally, the butterflies in his stomach fluttering furiously. "Do you…like it? I mean, because if you don't I can always return it – well, actually I don't think I can, since Fang was the one who paid and I think he has the receipt – but I'm sure I can find a way-"

"Iggy, I love it." She said it so softly that he almost didn't hear it over his mindless blathering; but he did hear it, and he was pretty sure that having such a sudden mood-swing from dread and nervous anticipation to absolute elation could be dangerous for his heart.

"Oh. Well, that's good," he stammered, still blushing furiously. Then he was struck with another sudden thought, and – yep, these mood-swings were definitely going to give him a heart attack someday. "You like it with the heart pendant, or in spite of it? I mean, not that it really matters, as long as you like it, and I guess you like the heart thing, since it's part of it, but it's really hard to tell you know? I don't even know if you're smiling or frowning or whatever so it's kind of hard to tell-"

He knew she was smiling as soon as she pressed her lips against his.

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**So, I don't really have a preference for Iggy, so I tried to make it fit for any girl. Well, any girl but Max since I mentioned her in there…oops?**


	29. Congratulations

**A'ight, so I was pretty much idealess when I came up with this, so forgive me if it comes out also. It's also about midnight, so that might be part of the problem as well.**

**This AU, and I made Total and Akila human. Sorry? I also changed everyone's names, just for kicks.**

**Total = Trent and Akila = Alicia. I'm sure you can figure everyone else's names out.

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**Congratulations – **_(_n._) _I'm happy that you're happy that I'm happy, but please go away

Trent smiled and nodded his head in thanks, mentally stabbing every idiot who stopped him on his way out of the church to congratulate him. God dammit, why didn't these people understand that he just wanted to get out of here so he could spend some quality time with his new wife?

As soon as he thought of her, he felt her hand slip into his and squeeze as she laughed lightly. He stopped striding towards the door to turn his head towards Alicia, and smiled. She looked radiant, with her white wedding gown hugging her curves and accented her pale blond hair, how her blue eyes sparkled at him with mirth. He let his thumb slide down her fourth finger to rub against the diamond on the ring he had placed on her finger a few hours ago, his heart pounding in his chest. He still couldn't believe that they were…married. Married. Him and Alicia, married. Marrrriiieeeed.

"Trent, honey, are you sure you didn't drink a little too much?" Alicia looked at him, her eyebrows raised.

"Of course not! What makes you think that?" He almost brought his hand up to his heart in mock surprise, but stopped when he realized that meant letting go of her hand. He started bringing his other hand to his heart, but stopped that too when champagne sloshed out of the glass and nearly soaked his tux. He frowned at it petulantly, feeling a bit miffed that both his hands were occupied just when he needed them. Darn.

"Because first you're grumbling about 'idiots who are congratulation-whores', and then you're stretching out the word 'married'," she said, gently taking the champagne glass out of his hand.

Trent blushed hotly but then remembered the reason for his aggravation. "It's not my fault! They're so damn annoying! If they want to congratulate us, fine, but just do it all at once and get it over with!"

"CONGRATULATIONS!" Trent gave a garbled shout as six people jumped in front of him and shouted their congrats. The next thing he knew, he was laying on the floor, blinked confusedly as he tried to count the number of people hovering over him. Two Maxs, three Nicks, five Jeffs, a couple Tiffanys and four or five Zephyrs and Ariels. And about seven radiant Alicias.

"Hey, when did you guys all get clones?" As he watched all the clones simultaneously facepalm, Trent took this moment to reflect and change his previous judgment.

Individual congratulations, while more time-consuming, were definitely healthier for drunken grooms.

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**Meh. It was alright, wasn't it? These keep getting longer and longer...I should stop this and write some oneshots, ne?**

**When I was typing that last line, I seriously heard Trent/Total say, "I'm not drunk!" inside my head. No lie.  
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	30. Blush

**So…my drabbles have gotten longer and longer. I'm going to write a short one now.

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**Blush – **_(_v._)_ notice me, compliment me, make me feel loved

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Fang idly examined Max, who was leaning into him while the two of them watched the news. Well, it was now the one of them, since Fang had been sufficiently distracted by the refreshed-looking girl who was curling up on the sofa, his arm casually draped around her shoulders. (Yes, he had done the whole yawn-stretch-casually-drape-arm-around-her-shoulders thing. Don't judge; it worked, didn't it?) Eventually, Max was irked by his incessant staring, and turned her face towards him, raising an eyebrow. Strands of her hair framed her face, and Fang studied her calmly for a bit longer before nodding to himself in affirmation.

"You got a haircut, didn't you?" he questioned her, shifting a bit so she could face him fully without moving away from his side. (What? She was surprisingly warm…and, apparently, he loved being warm.)

"Yeah…so?" she said defensively. He felt her tense under his arm, so he pulled her closer and curled one of the newly styled strands around his finger, making sure to 'accidently' brush her cheek with his knuckle every so often.

"It looks good," he stated simply, and smirked to himself as her face turned a bit pink even as a light smile graced her lips.

"Thanks" was all she said, but it was impossible (for Fang, at least) to miss that she seemed a bit happier as she snuggled even closer to him and turned her attention back to the TV, saying nothing about his fingers, which were still idly playing with her hair.

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**HA! 250 words, as opposed to the 50-ish of the last one! Success! (Even though it's still relatively long as far as drabbles go, but shhhhhh…..)**


	31. Glomp

**Wow, I haven't updated for a while. Sorry?**

**Apologies in advance for this one, but it got stuck in my head and WON'T. LEAVE. So I'll admit my dirty little secret now: I ship Nudge/Gazzy. Only when they're grown up of course, but…see, this one day I stumbled across this oneshot. With Nudge and Gazzy. And the author didn't even like the pairing, but…**

**Just spent two hours looking for that fic. Couldn't find it. :(**

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Glomp—**_(_n._) _Totally platonic, but it sure doesn't _look_ that way

Zephyr wandered through the hallways of his new dorm, lugging his duffel bag with one hand and dragging his backback by its strap with the other. College had just started last week, but it was going to take him a while to get used to all of this. _Well, at least I have a little bit of home_, he thought and smiled as he looked at the nametag stuck lopsidedly on his shirt. He hadn't wanted to give the new dorm director or whatever the full nickname his little sister Ariel had given him, so he had just said 'Gazzy' and watched as the harassed looking young man scrawled it in Sharpie on the little piece of paper and slapped it on his chest. This dorm was apparently infamous for giving its incoming freshies crazy nicknames, in order to help them bond with each other…Zeph wasn't sure if that was their real purpose of if this was some roundabout hazing ritual, but hey, he missed his old nickname. He was so busy musing about the pluses of having two z's in his new name that he nearly passed the little silver key lying on the floor without a second glance…but, then again, he had always loved shiny objects. He dropped his duffel in favor of picking up the key to see if there was a name on it, but there was only a capital N written in Sharpie with feminine curls at the ends of the letter. He frowned at it, wondering what the N could stand for….

"Ohmigosh! You found my key!" Zephyr looked up sharply as a black girl with a mass of curly hair squealed in front of him, bouncing on the balls of her feet. He hesitantly relinquished the object as she continued to talk: "I mean, this is, like, the first time I've lost it, and I'm a junior! If I'd lost it freshman year, that would be _totally_ different! Thank you so much for finding it! And not stealing it! Although I don't know why you'd steal it, since you don't even know what it opens, but-"

"NUDGE! WE'RE GONNA BE LATE!" A dirty blonde girl stood at the end of the hallway, glaring at Nudge, who stopped mid-sentence to grab the key, nearly body-tackle Zephyr into a hug, and then pulled back just as quickly, glancing at his name-tag and bolting down the hall, shouting a "Bye Gazzy!" over her shoulder.

Poor Zephyr just stood in the hallway, trying to figure out how so much had happened within two minutes, and suddenly craving the feeling of a warm body pressed against his, and black curls ticking his neck. He would have to make sure to meet…'Nudge' soon. And as often as possible.

_You know what? _Gazzy thought to himself with a huge grin, leaving his bags in the hallway and strolling away. _I think I'm gonna LOVE college._

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Wow. That was long. I was planning to do a freaking one paragraph drabble, but noooo, I have to explain how he got his name for half of this whole thing! Gahhhh… btw, Gaz leaves his bags in the hallway because he's slightly high on Nudge. Just to clarify.  
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	32. Growl

**Yo. Check out my other story. And my poll. And…you know what? Just prowl my profile and tell me what I should add. A new, more relevant profile picture idea would be much appreciated. :)**

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**Growl**– (n.) …In human, it translates into 'nom nom nom'

Fang padded into the kitchen, his bare feet making barely any noise against the tiles. In fact, Max wouldn't have even heard him come into the room if he hadn't walked into the refrigerator. She loved the days when Fang's internal alarm clock decided to let him sleep in, because he always woke up around noon looking like he was asleep on his feet, and adorably so.

Plus, he apparently just couldn't be bothered to keep his eyes open so he constantly ran into things, which was just funny as heck.

"Shut up," Fang grumbled at her groggily as she tried to contain herself to a light giggle, munching on another chocolate chip cookie. He slumped into the chair next to hers and his eyes drifted shut again. She took this moment to examine her boyfriend, nearly fan-girl sighing as she took in the sleepy halo his hair made around his face, and the way his eyes seemed to sharpen as soon as they saw her tray of cookies, and the way his hand slyly crept along the table…

She snapped into action, pulling her cookies closer to hair and curling over them, automatically making a warning sound deep in her throat.

"Max? Did you just…" Fang seemed fully awake now, and extremely amused. "Did you just _growl_ at me?"

"No…" she fought back a blush as he broke out into silent laughter, his shoulders shaking as he leaned back in his chair.

She pouted and stood up, still holding her cookies protectively. She considered retreating to her room and leaving Fang to his own devices as she enjoyed her scrumptious baked goods, but then she had a better thought.

"Well, look who's talking…" she moved behind his chair and whispered it into his ear, smiling deviously as he immediately tensed. _Feminine wiles for the win._ "I seem to recall an awful lot of growling coming from a certain tied-up someone last night, and it sure wasn't me."

She couldn't hold back her smirk as Fang turned towards her with lust-filled eyes…which soon became extremely frustrated lust-filled eyes as she bolted out of the kitchen, laughing freely, still holding her cookies close.

Mission Success: Retreat to her room and leave Fang all hot and bothered as she enjoyed her scrumptious baked goods.

Max really, really enjoyed revenge.

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Sorry about the…bondage comment…..unless you guys like bondage. Right. So, anyways, sorry for taking forever, I know the ending was iffy but oh well, and did you like it?


	33. Tears

**I'm going to have to end this fic soon….Chapter 35 will be the last chapter! But I'll continue The Incident and work on a legit chapter story, okay?**

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Tears – **(n.) Your eyes are the windows to your soul. Never forget that.

Max was on the edge of the cliff, watching the hawks float through the air far above her. She didn't know how she'd gotten there, but that was okay. She was there, and that was all that mattered.

She didn't know when he got there either, but as soon as he stepped behind her, she knew he was _there._

And she whirled around and stared at him, wondering how much he had changed, but all his features blurred away as she met his deep, intense eyes and saw all her love reflected back to her.

And then she was in his arms, safe and secure, and she didn't know how she'd gotten there but she was there and he was there and _that was all that mattered_ and then she was sobbing into his black shirt because everything was right in the world she was finally _complete_

And then she woke up, still clutching her pillow, which was wet with her tears. She flung it at the wall, then slammed herself into her mattress and continued crying for the opposite reason.

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This? Angsty? Never….. I hope you like my influx of emo.**


	34. Fist Bump

**Second to last chapter! I feel so accomplished!**

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**Fist-Bump **– (_n._) First the hand-shake, then the high-five, and now THIS.

"Gazzy, get down here!" Max shrieked, her voice somehow reaching every corner of the house, and then some – to the point where Gazzy, in the middle of climbing out of the second-floor window, took his hands of the windowsill he was precariously perched upon to cover his ears. And then lost his balance and tumbled out of the window.

_Bad, bad idea,_ he mentally scolded himself, subconsciously unfurling his wings before he hit the dirt. _Don't move your hands if it means you're gonna fall._

He glided down towards the ground, then gave a mighty flap before he actually reached it, soaring up into the air.

"_GAZZY!_" Max's voice had increase in volume, and rage.

The Gasman gulped and patted his pocket, making sure his latest invention was safe and secure, then turned sharply around the corner of the Martinez house and ducked into Iggy's room through the open window.

"Is it safe?" Iggy stood in the middle of the room facing away from Gazzy, his hands clasped his back.

_He looks like a movie villain, _Gazzy thought to himself, mentally snickering, but kept his face and tone suitably solemn as he pulled their latest invention out of the pocket of his cargo pants.

"It is safe," he replied, tossing the black bundle to his partner, who spun around and caught it with eerie precision. _Kind of creepy, since he's blind, but whatever,_ Gazzy shrugged, used to Iggy's skills.

Iggy held his fist out and grinned as Gazzy tapped it with his smaller fist. "Say hello to the 'Bra Bomb', Gasser!"

"_GAZZY! IGGY!_" Max's voice had reached painfully high notes as she pounded on Iggy's door, and Gazzy grabbed the bomb from Iggy's outstretched hand and stuffed it back into his pocket.

The boys turned towards the door, turned towards each other, and as one, ran towards the window and vaulted out of it just as Max punched through the door in a shower of splinters.

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Heheh, I wonder why Max was so upset… the ending felt a bit off. Oh well. By the way, how many of you are reading The Incident?**


	35. Cachinnate

**So…you know how I was doing those Retakes? Well, goldenmiracles1914 sent me some new Signs of Happiness, and, well, I couldn't resist. Sorry for how unorganized this has gotten! I'm taking down the Retakes, but don't worry! I'll be reposting them when I catch back up with myself. Or do you want me to leave them up...?

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**Cachinnate – **(v.) to laugh loudly or immoderately

It was a balmy summer day, and Jeb had decided to take to young Flock to town, as he didn't want them to be completely isolated from society.

After getting some shopping done, and chasing a rebellious Iggy throughout Walmart (and then getting kicked out of Walmart), Jeb walked the six children to a small arcade and told them to stay there and be good for a few minutes while he finished up the shopping.

The four younger children immediately ran to play games as soon as Jeb exited the arcade, but Max and Fang, to their credit, waited until they saw their parental figure safely cross the street and enter a shop with the letters P-L-A-Y-B-O-Y gracing its front door.

_Then_ they ran to one of the games.

It was while Fang and Max were furiously jumping up platforms as Mario and Luigi that the older boys walked into the arcade. These boys were around twelve years old, and obviously seemed to consider themselves superior to the smaller children running around. Some boys stepped in front of some of the screens so the children playing would lose, while others simply grabbed the game controller and took over.

One of them, however, a boy with dirty-blond hair and a tanned complexion, however, made the fatal mistake of messing with Maximum Ride. He stood dangerously close to our favorite six-year-olds, and leered at them as Fang and Max finished the last level before the boss fight.

When Bowser appeared and began to attack, he started to cachinnate.

Max spun around, punched him in the face, and returned to the game, getting in some good hits on Bowser before Fang stopped gaping and went back to playing.

And thus, Max became leader of the Flock.

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**Just so you know, that's the legit dictionary definition. Yeah, I've never heard this word before either.**


	36. Rejoice

**Okay...I think this should work, unless can't handle it. I don't want to stop doing the Retakes, so I'm going to insert them after the chapter they're retaking, while still going onward with new Signs.**

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**Rejoice **_**– **_Being a religious minority sucks.

Fang couldn't help but gape when Max jumped in front of him, clad in that dress-cape thing gospel singers wore, and told him to "REJOICE!" while dancing the Macarena.

_C'mon, now, shake out of it_, Fang thought as he tried to snap back into his calm, cool persona…but it was very, very difficult, as Max had now procured a glowing halo that was light on freaking _fire_ and was shaking it like a tambourine.

He had been running through the halls of the school (normal school, not the School) in terror as Max chased him down with her Fiery Halo of Doom when little mini-Nudges and mini-Gazzys popped out of the lockers and started praying to Queen Maple Leaf of Canada.

Max and a league of mini-Flock members had just trapped him in a corner of a circular room and had joined icicle-covered hands in order to steal his soul and turn it into steak when Fang finally woke up from his strange, strange dream.

He had never been happier to wake up.

Hell, he'd never been happier that Max was agnostic.

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**Don't you just love crazy dreams? XD**


	37. Blissfulness

**Yo…I know it's been forever, but in my defense, I have exams! Anyway, this one's Iggy-centric. For some reason, I always do warm-up drabbles about the Igster…maybe because he's just so chill? I mean, Max and Fang have got all this tension. Something that really pissed me off: Iggy…in Chad…not supporting their relationship. Iggy and Fang are bound to be close! Why would one brother do that to the other? WHY? **

* * *

**Blissfulness**- A feeling of bliss, obviously

Iggy sipped at his carbonated drink, smiling as he felt the little _pink_ paper parasol Dr. M had dropped into his glass scratch against his chin. He leaned back in his _yellow and orange_ lawn chair, hearing it creak as he pressed his back into it. His bare feet were ensconced by the _green_ grass of the Martinez's backyard, and just for fun he dug his toes into the rich _brown_ dirt. If he stretched his senses – at least, that's what it felt like he was doing – he could recognize the _white_ of the back door, and the _light blue_ of the walls. In front of him, if he stretched his senses real far, he could just make out the side of the _brown_ tree trunk in the middle of the yard. He could hear the younger kids' laughter, and if he listened very carefully, he could almost tell exactly what they were doing – and, judging by the dangerous sounds the branch Gazzy was jumping on, he could tell exactly how long it'd take for the branch to break.

_Three._

_Two._

_One._

Iggy smiled blissfully as he heard Gazzy and the tree limb hit the ground with a loud yell and a louder _crack-thump_. It was days like this that he could handle being blind.

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**Worth the wait? :) Review.**


	38. Titter

**Guess who's back!**

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**Titter** – Imagine Max as a posh person, and she'll sound like this

Fang rubbed his temples and sighed, resisting the urge to just lay his head down on the table to get away from the girl across him. Max V simply tittered at his facial expression and continued talking about various girly things and then about _stocks_, both of which Fang found equally boring.

After Max II was defeated, Itex stopped trying to recreate another Max…however, they hadn't stopped trying to replace her, this time with an "improved" version.

When Itex figured out Max II had been revealed when she offered to cook breakfast, they created Max III, who was a cooking demon. She had shown up where the Flock was staying with fresh blueberry muffins. Fang had kept the (real) Max…occupied in her bedroom while the rest of the Flock dealt with the Max clone. She was rejected because Iggy felt she was intruding on his territory a bit too much when she snatched his favorite spatula out of his hand and banned him from cooking, since "boys were too ignorant to cook."

For Max III, Itex made her a bit more docile and gentle, to counter Max's stubbornness and hot temper. The whole Flock had been present to meet her, but the poor girl had run away crying when Iggy made a sexual innuendo. (Real) Max didn't scold him, however, as the innuendo was so subtle not even Iggy noticed it.

Max IV… well, Fang supposed Itex thought (real) Max wasn't connecting too well with her boys or something, because this Max was really, really guy-ish. She actually lasted the longest out of all the Maxs, since not even (real) Max had a problem with her, but after Max IV confessed to the Flock that she wanted to get a sex change, she suddenly disappeared, and within an hour, Max V had walked into their lives.

And Max V was very, very girly. She likes frilly pink things, which was okay except she refused to wear anything _other_ than frilly pink things, and they had to be expensive too. The entire Flock had rejected her in an instant, but the chick refused to leave. She had been following (real) Max around for two days straight, trying to convince her to be her fashion twin and wear equally pink and frilly things, and to invest in various companies so they could spend any money thus gained on _more_ pink frilly things.

It had gotten the point where Max (yes, the real, extremely possessive Max) had forced Fang to take Max V on a date and "take one for the team." As Fang listened to the latest Max titter and continue her one-sided conversation, he finally gave up and rested his head on the table.

He had a sinking feeling that when they got back, the rest of the Flock would be gone.

* * *

**Well, this came out longer than expected. You like?**


	39. Retake: Giggle

**Alright, NOW it's time for retakes (again)! MEGA-UPDATE!**

* * *

**Retake!**

* * *

**Giggle **– (v.) It's, like, the girly version of laughing in your face

Angel waited patiently until Gazzy, looking around warily, water gun clutched tightly with both hands, was directly under the tree she was perched in. _Three…Two…One….FIRE._ She let go of the water balloon she was holding and couldn't hold back a little giggle at her brother's face as he was soaked. Big mistake. In two seconds, she was flapping hard into the sky as Gazzy flew behind her, trying to shoot her with his water gun. (All the normal people on the ground wondered about the random raindrops.)

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**I've heard that some people have been having trouble reviewing because of my spastic chapter rearranging, so hopefully these updates will get us past the overlap and I can feed upon your love and affection once again.**


	40. Retake: Chuckle

**Retake!**

* * *

**Chuckle – **(v.) It's, like, a quiet evil laugh for when you don't want to reveal yourself to your victims

Gazzy rubbed his hands together and would've cackled if he hadn't been sitting right outside the closet in which he had locked Max and Fang. He limited himself to a quiet chuckle, then pressed his ear to the door to hear their conversation, still grinning deviously about his pure _evil_.

"What the hell! Fang, how did we get in here?"

"I don't know…I heard Iggy calling for me, so I walked down the hall…next thing I know, I'm shoved into a closet."

Gazzy grins deviously. He had mimicked Iggy's voice…and Fang had no clue!

"Same here…" Max said, "Only I heard Nudge calling for me."

Gazzy pressed his ear to the door, eager to hear the oldest Flock members' theories about their predicament.

"So…Fang, what do you want to do now?"

Gazzy grinned. He loved being evil!

"Let's make out."

Gazzy sprang away from the door with a little shriek, and raced away from that door. _I hate being evil!_

Inside the closet, Fang fiddled with the door and picked the lock as Max waited, still chuckling about their little brother's antics.

* * *

**I hate leaving the space down here empty, but I've got nothing to say...**


	41. Retake: HalfSmirk

**Retake!**

* * *

**Half-Smirk **– You funny boy, you funny

You want to know why Fang rarely truly smiles, always giving a little half-smirk instead? It's because Iggy destroyed his self-esteem when they were five.

_Fang smiled at the new boy, Iggy, who had just been put in the cage across his._

"_Hi, I'm Fang," he said, making sure to be as friendly as possible._

_The blond boy across from him blinked and stared at him. "Fang? You don't even have any fangs. That's stupid."_

_Fang blinked slowly as his grin died. And he never smiled again._

Of course, that was before Max came in, the day Iggy was gone for his life-changing operation. He gave her a little smile, too insecure to give her a true grin, but not wanting to be rude.

She told him he should smile more.

Poor little Fang grew up smiling for Max, not smiling for Iggy, and (not knowing what everyone else wanted) just doing some weird little half-smile-half-not thing because he just hates being rude. Now his face is stuck in a perpetual half-smirk.

* * *

**Yo. Wassup?**


	42. Retake: Smile

**Smile **– (n.) a chance for me to write some shameless fluff

She loves his smile, the way it brightens the whole room. Every time he smiles, she wants to pause time and just bask in the light it creates, because not even a picture can compare to the real thing. She'll never tell him this, for fear of sounding like a sentimental mushball, but she always feels like his happiness is her happiness.

And even though she never notices, he feels the same way about her smile. He's never told her this, (for pretty much the same reason), but it's his goal in life, his dream, to make sure she's always smiling, because her happiness is his.

* * *

**Have you guys read this one yet?**


	43. Retake: Snort

**Heheh, I love Fang.**

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**Snort – **(n.) this ties in with Glomp, so it'll make more sense if you reread that one first

If anyone had ever told him that Max would hug him or flirt with him any time in the near future, Fang would've snorted and informed the person in question of his idiocracy.

If this same person had told him that Max would kiss him, willingly, with absolutely no prompting on Fang's part, he would've given the person the address of the nearest mental institution.

But now that he's seen the power chocolate has over Max and her behavior, Fang muses, he's not that sure anymore. And in this case, he really likes not being sure.

* * *

**Review, please!**


	44. Retake: Grin

** I had fun with this one. :)**

* * *

**Grin -** (n.) why yes, he did just assume that everyone knew what he was trying to do

Iggy grinned and lifted his head haughtily as a two-year-old Angel and her not-much-older brother and sister clapped dutifully.

"Now that you have accepted me as your dictator, your first task is to-"

"Wait, what?" Nudge exclaimed, cutting him off. "How come you get to be dicinator? I wanna be dicinator!"

"You can't!" Iggy scowled. "I'm dictator!"

"I wanna be dicator tooooo!" Angel wailed, and Gazzy joined in soon after.

Iggy scowled and sat down on his bed as the littler kids in his room started to argue amongst themselves over who got to be 'diclator'. It seemed like he'd have to put his plans for world domination on hold for a little while...

* * *

**I just realized that half of these Signs are fax-related, and the other half are Iggy-related...am I obsessed?**


	45. Retake: Squeal

**You have no idea how long it took me to spell Onomatopoeia correctly...where the heck did that word come from, anyway?**

* * *

**Squeal – **(n.) Onomatopoeia for the win!

Gazzy glanced to his left, then to his right. All his class mates were clustered in groups around the petting zoo, and none were looking at him. _Coast clear_.

He crouched down and stared at the little pig in front of him, which squealed happily as he hesitantly reached out a hand to pet it.

_Huh, I didn't know pigs had fur._

He smiled a little and stood up as the pig edged closer to him and squealed again. He hadn't made any friends yet, and it was always nice to know that at least _someone_ was happy to see him. Even if it was just a pig.

Gazzy gave the little pig a sad smile as he started moving back towards the gate, where the teacher was waiting – and nearly fell flat on his face as the animal worked its way between his feet, squealing exultantly.

"What? C'mon, I need to go now," Gazzy said as he crouched down again, looking into the pig's eyes as if it could understand what he was saying. The pig squealed some more and basked in the attention Gazzy was giving it.

Gazzy picked up the little pig with the intention of putting it in the corner of the petting zoo or something, but he was surprised by how light the creature was.

_Wow, I could carry him in my backpack without a problem…._Gazzy stopped, and eyed the pig, which squealed again with happiness. _In my backpack…._

He was sitting by himself on the bus, somewhere near the middle, and for the first time he was glad no one was sitting next to him, since the little pig had some pretty strong feelings about being inside a backpack (Gazzy couldn't tell if they were happy squeals or not).

"Why's your backpack moving?" Gazzy lurched away from the window with a guilty expression and turned towards the thin girl who was slipping into the empty seat next to him.

"Uh…" he gulped and grabbed his backpack, trying to keep it from moving as the pig started to kick and squeal again.

"What's in there?" she looked at his bag suspiciously, and Gazzy took this chance to examine her. He vaguely remembered seeing her in his class, a few seats behind him._ What's her name? Marie-Anne, right? _Either way, her hair was in two pigtails, and everyone knew that girls with pigtails were completely trustable. (Or Gazzy was just happy that someone had finally talked to him.)

"Promise you won't tell? It's a pig…from the petting zoo…." Gazzy whispered to her, opening to zipper a little as proof.

"Woah! You're gonna keep it? That's so cool, Zephyr!" she whispered back, and Gazzy puffed out his chest a little in pride. Not only had he just made a friend, but she was a girl and thought he was _cool_, too.

At school, Marie-Anne helped him out by telling the teacher he desperately needed to go to the nurse, and staying with him for the hour until school ended. He learned a lot – she was an only child, her middle name was Katie, and none of the girls had talked to him because Sarah had staked a claim on him the first day he transferred but still hadn't worked up the guts to say hi. Gazzy had never been more grateful to a small farm animal; it had given him a friend who was above the archaistic societal boundaries set in ancient civilizations between those who considered themselves elite and the others who were more independent such as the laboring class, thus giving privileges to those less deserving!

When he got home, Max was very happy about his new friend, and not-so-happy about the pig.

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**Lol, this came out much longer than expected. But at least Gazzy gets some lovin' too!**


	46. Retake: Snicker

**I...don't even know.**

* * *

**Snicker – **a verb…or a noun?

Max glared at Fang from across the room, and he simply smirked back at her. Her eyes dropped a bit to follow the motion of his hand as it slowly brought the remaining half of the Snickers bar towards his mouth. She couldn't help licking her lips as she imagined what it tasted like…

And then Fang bit off another chunk of candy goodness and she went back to glaring at him as he smirked at her, slowly chewing and swallowing the bar. He crumpled the wrapper and tossed it into the trashcan as he walked out of the living room and through the kitchen, making sure she could see his smirk. Max growled as she watched him leave, then crossed her arms and half-heartedly turned her attention back to the television.

The next day, Fang came into the living room with _two_ Snickers bars and the same smirk, and she barely restrained herself from tackling him.

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**...So, yeah. Absolutely pointless. On the other hand, I'm hungry now...and I wouldn't mind tackling a boy like Fang. ;)**


	47. Retake: Smirk

**So, as a semi-apology from the unfluffy and pointless last chapter, I wrote this. And oh my, did I enjoy it. ;)**

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**Smirk – **Fang ain't the only one who can do it

"Well, well, well, what do we have here?"

Fang shuddered slightly as he heard Max whisper sensuously in his ear. He had been the one who'd pushed for something new to spice up their relationship, but dear God, who knew Max would be so into the dominatrix thing?

Fang smiled wryly at that thought, futilely attempting to free his arms from the scarf she had used to pin them to the headboard. Actually, of all people, he should've known Max would be so into the dominatrix thing.

He shivered and barely bit back a low moan as Max ran her nails down his bare chest. He could vaguely see her face in the dim lighting, but he could tell she was smirking at him, and _holy shit, it was such a turn on._

"Now, now, Fang," she cooed, and Fang couldn't help but swallow hard at the undertones of pure deviousness in her voice. Her fingers trailed lower down his body ever so slowly, and it took all of his willpower not to tug at his restraints again – apparently being physically restrained heightened his senses, because boy, he could feel _everything_ she was doing to him.

She continued speaking in that sweet, absolutely sinful voice. "I know you _love_ being quiet, but I'm going to make that _very _difficult for you…Is that a problem?"

Fang did nothing but groan softly. Hell, he didn't think he'd be able to speak even if he wasn't normally laconic, and she'd barely even touched him!

"Ah, I guess I'll just have to try _extra hard_ to make you speak up, hmm, Fang?" As he panted slightly at the promises he could hear in her dulcet tones, he had the somewhat ominous, somewhat anticipatory feeling that he was behaving exactly the way she wanted him to.

His head rolled back to give her more access as she began pressing the lightest of kisses on his throat, holding back another moan. He had a feeling that if he gave in now, she would stop, and then he might fucking implode.

Besides, Fang had a feeling that when Max finally made him speak, he wouldn't be complaining.

(_More like begging._)

* * *

**Lol, could you hear my evil chuckles as I typed this? I swear, I think I actually evil-laughed when I thought of that last line. So, what do you guys think of my skills at writing dirty things?**


	48. Retake: Laughter

**Decided to give y'all some pure, clean Fax fluff after the dirtiness of the last chapter. ;)**

* * *

**Laughter – **Just because Fang doesn't do it doesn't mean he doesn't _feel_ it

It's one of his favorite memories of the good old days when they still had Jeb: sitting next to her on the roof of the E-shaped house, basking in the warm light of the sun and her laughter.

It's one of her favorite memories of the good old days when they still had Jeb: sprawling next to him on the roof of the E-shaped house, laughing as she basked in the warm light of the sun and his smile.

(The poor roof doesn't remember a thing.)

* * *

**I was actually going to only have Fang's memory, but it seemed too short. I don't really think this would be Max's favorite memory, hers would actually be something about the whole Flock, you know?**


	49. Retake: Snigger

**I'm back!**

* * *

**Snigger – **Ahh, kids….

Jeb glanced warily around the kitchen table. His three oldest kids and been wrestling in the mud before he called them in for dinner, so Max, Ig and Fang were dirty all over except for their cleanly washed hands. Instead of sitting as they normally did, with the younger three on one side of the table and the older ones on the other, they were alternating by age groups. On top of that, and what made Jeb worry the most, was Max's and Iggy's badly concealed sniggers. Heck, even Fang had a bit of a devious smirk.

Jeb sighed and began eating. If his kids were planning something, there was nothing he could do to stop them.

Five minutes later, Jeb was on his second course while Nudge and Angel were shrieking with playful fright as Max and Fang rubbed mud on them, and Gazzy was joyfully hugging Iggy to transfer as much dirt as possible.

* * *

**Lol, I love Gazzy. He's so unappreciated...**


	50. Retake: Cackle

**Ha, I think y'all will like this one. :)**

* * *

**Cackle – **I always end up doing this one with the strangest characters, don't I?

I raised my furry paws above my head, cackling as the dagger I held glinted in the glare of her bedside lamp. I watched with murderous joy as her eyes widened with surprise, and then fright. This waif of a child, who dared to hold me in her grubby clutches, who was the reason for my suffering as she dragged along with her through air and dirt and water, and then stuffed me in her backpack whenever she didn't need me, who was the reason my fur was all matted and unclean, she was _finally _going to get her due for all the torment she had put me through, _finally, finally_ -

"Oh, there you are, Celeste!" As the hands of the young blonde wretch reached for me, I held silent, and still. My time will come. Patience.

* * *

**Not what you expected? Did it make sense?**


	51. Retake: Cheer

**Hey. This one was fun. :) Oh, and I'm on vacation.**

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**Cheer – **It's for alcoholics, yo

Big Tim strode into the abandoned apartment building at two in the morning, letting the rickety old door slam behind him with a weak creak. He grinned victoriously when he spotted his friends sitting around the dingy lobby, playing cards as best they could while squinting through the haze of smoke coming from their cigarettes.

"Stole us all some damn fine beer, men!" He roared into the room, laughing wildly as they weakly cheered and made towards him. (He may have had a drink or two…or twelve before coming back, but hey, he was a happy drunk!)

"_Cheers."_

Big Tim and friends gaped as the plastic bag full of beer floated out of Tim's hands and smashed itself against a wall.

Half of them swooned and the other half screamed like little girls when a dark angel with midnight wings suddenly appeared before them, and Big Tim made a mental note to only steal for charities from now on before passing out.

Fang snickered and walked back out of the abandoned building, high-fiving a silently laughing Max before they spread their wings and took off for home.

_Nothing like a little Dark Avenger playing to relieve stress._

* * *

**Because Fang and Max are just sadistic enough to get a kick out of things like this. ;)**


	52. Retake: Shriek

**Guess who's not dead. -_- I've sort of fallen out of fanfic writing...hey, at least I finally finished this one!**

* * *

**Shriek – **you throw your hands up in the air sometimes, saying "Aaaaaah!"

It was Saturday morning, Iggy realized hazily as he came to semi-consciousness. By his internal alarm it was only nine o' clock, so he had three more hours to snooze. He happily nuzzled his pillow and went back to sleep, only vaguely registering the muffled laughter and giggling to his left that meant Gazzy and Angel were up to something devious.

When he woke up again – at noon, a much more reasonable time – he groggily pulled himself out of bed and stumbled towards the bedroom door. His fingers brushed the edge of Gazzy's bed – _that's odd, I didn't know Gazzy had pink sheets_ – but he disregarded the strange…presence of something pink constantly brushing against his fingertips.

He opened the –curiously pink- door and stepped into the hallway, hearing Fang's soft footsteps just in time to avoid stumbling into his brother's path. Iggy heard Fang grunt a greeting, and he reached out his hand to give Fang's shoulder a friendly bump. His fingers brushed the cloth of his Fang's shirt.

Fang's _pink_ shirt.

"AHHH! FANG'S WEARING PINK?" Iggy shouted, pulling his hands back and jumping away from this anomaly, the knob of his bedroom door digging into his back rather painfully.

"Iggy. There's pink plastic wrap on your fingers."

Iggy blinked slowly at Fang's calm, slightly aggravated statement. _Well, at least I'm awake now…._

* * *

**Review if you love me! And if you still actually want me to finish this story...ahh, it's been so long since I've written something!**


	53. Retake: Incoherent Speech

Alright, so...I'm done with this fic. I can't think of anything to write, I don't even like MR anymore, I haven't even read Angel yet! (If someone could summarize that for me though, that'd be great.) I'm going to post all the retakes I already have written and then...done.

* * *

**Incoherent Speech – **(n.) hey, someone understands it!

I watched, bemused, as Nudge and Gazzy continued talking in gibberish to each other. I _knew_ they were talking about me – they said 'Max' every now and then, and kept glancing at me – but I had no flipping idea what they were saying. I was pretty sure they weren't talking in any actual languages, but they obviously understood each other….

After watching them laugh about something Nudge had just said ("Max isay osay unfusedcay!") I gave up and stomped away, ignoring how they high-fived as I headed towards my room, where I had left the laptop. It was time to learn Pig Latin.

* * *

What happens in Angel?


	54. Retake: Insomnia

Well, from what I've heard, all this beuatiful stuff about Fax I've been writing is all a LIE. *Sniffs haughtily.*

* * *

**Insomnia **– (n.) Too much to do, not enough time

Sometimes, when Fang can't sleep because of all the thoughts running helter-skelter through his head, he sneaks into Max's room and watches her sleep for a little, until he feels calm as well and all his worries disappear- at least, long enough for him to relax and get some sleep of his own. It's gotten to the point where he can't sleep at all unless he sees her face every night, so, although he'll never tell anyone, he visits Max's room every night without fail, just for a few seconds, because it's the only way he can find some inner peace.

What he can't know is that nowadays, Max (although she fakes slumber when she hears him outside her room) can't fall asleep until she knows Fang is near her, at least for a few moments.

* * *

If anyone wants to make requests, I'm up for some one-shotting. If it's MR though, I'm only going to reference the original trilogy because that's where the good stuff BEGINS AND ENDS. I also like Dramione. ^_^ And...I'm sure there's other fandoms I'm into, I just can't remember. A lot of times I read fanfics that I haven't read the actual fiction for...


	55. Retake: Chortle

**I'm baaaaaack. After, like ages, I know, and I'm sure many of you have given up on this fic. But hey, I just realized that I had half of the Retake Signs already written, and I figured it'd be my one lifelong regret if I never finished this fic. ;)**

* * *

**Chortle – **you know, I've never heard anyone actually chortle….

Total chortled as he trotted into the Martinez living room. "Max, you'll never believe what just happened!"

Max gave a stressed sigh, since many terrible and stressful things had happened to her, the Flock, and her relationship with Fang – and Dylan. "What is it, Total?"

"Well, there's this one fanfiction author – you know what fanfiction is, right?" Total paused when Max shook her head. "Oh. Well, fanfiction is…er….it's not really important. Anyway, there's this one fanfi- this one author, who hasn't even read anything past the fifth book! In fact, she's ignoring everything after the third book, except for my darling Alika!"

He chortled again. "Isn't that rich? Who writes fanfi- er, who writes without reading the whole series? That's preposterous!"

Max looked at him blankly. "What books? What series? Total, what the _heck_ are you talking about? She's writing _what_?"

Total sighed. "It's fine, Max, forget about it. There's just no one who my sense of humor anymore, is there?"

She blinked at him, and raised an eyebrow. "Total, I've never understood your sense of humor."

* * *

**That fanfic author's me, btw. I stopped writing because I didn't want to read the new books, but then I realized I could disregard them! I've read up to Fang's departure though, so if anyone wants to summarize what comes next...**


	56. Retake: Hoot

**I'm glad Iggy and Gazzy are best friends, it has so much cuteness potential...**

* * *

**Hoot – **(v.) is a movie I saw a long time ago about saving some endangered owls….

Gazzy sat quietly on the roof of E-house, swinging his legs over the edge. He watched the motion of his chubby legs for a while, and critically analyzed his dirty feet, finally deciding that they were dirty enough for today. No need to run around barefoot before bed to meet his dirtiness quota.

He didn't notice Iggy's arrival until his best friend plopped down beside him with eerie accuracy. "What's up, Gazzy?"

"I was wondering…" he shook his head and swung his legs a little faster. "Never mind, it's silly."

"Yeah? Well, you can be as silly as you want with me," Iggy grinned, slinging his arm around Gazzy's shoulder.

Gazzy smiled back, and finally asked, "Well, I was…I was wondering why owls sound so _lonely_…."

Iggy blinked in surprise, but immediately changed his expression to make it look like he was sincerely pondering Gazzy's question when he felt the younger boy stiffen with embarrassment. "Well, Gazzy, you ask a very interesting question there, and I think I may just have an answer…."

"You _do?_" Gazzy's voice was tinged with awe, and Iggy mentally panicked. _Crap, got to make up something good, or else Gazzy will hate you forever and possibly murder you in your sleep!_

"Er, yes, you see," Iggy began with false confidence, "when an owl hoots-"

"Hoots?" Gazzy interrupted. "What's that?"

"It's when the owl goes _Who, Who_, Gaz," Iggy said fondly. His little brother was insanely cute at times. "So when an owl hoots, he's looking for a –" _Crap! I don't want to explain mating to Gazzy! "-_he's looking for a girlfriend._"_

"A girlfriend? _Eww,_" Gazzy sounded genuinely disgusted, and Iggy bit back a laugh.

"Crazy, right? But hey, they're owls. So that's why the owl sounds lonely, because he's looking for his girl!"

Gazzy sounded a bit upset. "So the owl _is_ lonely, then?"

Iggy mentally panicked again as he scrambled for a response. _If you say yes, then Gazzy will grow up to be a bitter old man who's afraid of love! Think, Ig, think! _"No! Because, because, each owl has its mate – his girl, you know? So he's just hooting to find her, and find her he will, okay Gaz?"

"So…" Gazzy sounded contemplative, not upset, Iggy noted with relief. "So, the owl's just searching, right? He's not gonna be lonely forever?"

"Exactly, Gazzy," Iggy ruffled his hair with a smile, "the owl will find his someone eventually."

* * *

**I had to fight the urge to make every reference to the owl gender-neutral, since normal people don't do that in everyday conversation...**


	57. Retake: Mmmm

**I really like AU fics, have I ever mentioned that? Some of them are just as interesting as the original stories...**

* * *

**Mmmm – **I always associate this sound with edibles, personally

Max calmly sipped her warm cup of herbal tea, her eyes closed and a faint smile gracing her lips. Her anger management guru had recommended she spend at least a half hour everyday just meditating over a cup of the warm, aromatic tea to help her relax.

_I am calm. I am at peace. I will not get mad today._ Max repeated the mantra to herself as she took another soothing sip of her tea. She could feel the effect of her guru's advice already: she felt more relaxed, her muscles seemed less tense, and her mind felt clearer, free of angry thoughts….

Somewhere on the other side of the property she and the Flock had bought after saving the world and whatnot, Max heard a loud BOOM and the distinct sound of Iggy's pyromaniac cackle.

Her mouth now twisted into a vicious scowl, Max hunched over her cup of tea and took a few deep breaths. _I am calm. I am at peace. I will not get mad- ah, screw it._

"_IGGY! WHAT DID YOU DO THIS TIME?"_

* * *

__**...Iggy keeps coming up in my drabbles. Why is that?**


	58. Retake: Guffaw

**Erm...what do you guys think?**

* * *

**Guffaw **– (v.) If only villains were this easy to defeat

Mr. Super-Evil-Villain strode into the small chamber where he had locked up the Flock with a flourish of his black, luxurious cape. He grinned evilly at Max in particular, who sat on the floor surrounded by the other winged children.

"I bet you're wondering why I have gathered you here today," Mr. Super-Evil-Villain began.

"No, I think I've got a pretty good why…" muttered Iggy, and Gazzy piped in with "Yeah, your name makes it really easy to guess that you're a bad guy!"

Mr. Super-Evil-Villain frowned at them, evilly, and shouted, "Silence! My evilness cannot be comprehended by your feeble minds, even if one of you can allegedly read minds!"

Angel smiled and gave a little wave. "That's me, it's all true!"

Mr. Super-Evil-Villain ignored her, and began guffawing. "Ah, my plan is so evil, you simpletons won't even know what's happening when the plan initiates! It's such a beautiful, beautiful plan-"

Mr. Super-Evil-Villain's laughter stopped suddenly as Max stood swiftly and slammed her fist into his temple. He crumpled to the ground silently.

Max rubbed her knuckles and poked him with her foot. "That was…surprisingly easy. Why are there no alarms?"

The Flock, which had risen in unison with Max and had assumed fighting positions – anticipating the security to start pouring in while Max duked it out with Mr. Super-Evil-Villain began to slowly relax.

"Yeah," Nudge said, "this is seriously weird. Aren't villains supposed to cackle? Why was he guffawing?"

"Oh my god, please tell me I didn't just knock out some normal guy with an unfortunate last name, that would seriously suck."

Fang rolled his eyes. "Max, he mentioned an evil plan, he's the bad guy. Let's leave."

* * *

**If I were to rewrite this, someone would walk into an elevator with the classic "I bet you're wondering why I gathered you all here today," and Max would freak out and punch the guy because, you know, elevators make her tense. But then again, there would be no guffawing...**


	59. Retake: Kiss

**Chocolate = kisses, clearly. I mean, it's not like there's any other reason to kiss someone, blech.**

* * *

**Kiss – **(v.) Yum, chocolate!

"Fang! Gimme the freaking candy!" Max shouted as she raced after Fang, dodging trees and trying not to lose her anger when he looked over his shoulder at her with a huge grin.

Fang finally skidded to a stop, and Max nearly fell over as she tried not to run into him.

"Fang!" she shouted again, and glared for good measure.

"I dunno, Max," he said mock-seriously, holding up his handful of Hersey's Kisses that Jeb had given him _to shore_ with Max. "What'll you give me in return?"

Max narrowed her eyes. "Fang, I'm twelve years old, there's not much I have to offer."

He nearly laughed at that, and Max ignored the strange fluttery feeling in her tummy. _Maybe I'm catching some avian stomach virus._

"How about a kiss?" Fang was still grinning, like it was a joke, but something in his eyes made her think he was serious.

_I kind of wish he was serious…._

"What!" Max said, more at the sudden thought than at Fang's question, but Fang blinked at her and tossed her some of the chocolates as his smile died. Max caught the candy as the wrappers flashed in the sunlight on auto-pilot. She was still trying to process Fang's question. _What was he thinking when he asked that? Heck, what was I thinking when he asked that!_

"Never mind, Max, I was kidding." But something like hurt was in his eyes as he said that, and she found it hard to believe him.

Late that evening, when the sun had almost slipped past the horizon, she found him sitting on the roof of the E-shaped house, bathed in orangey light.

"Hey, Max," he called as if he hadn't been avoiding her all day – but then again, Max hadn't been that eager to bump into him either, so she let it slide. Instead, she came over to his side and crouched next to him.

Fang looked at her questioningly, but she just shook her head at him, fighting a strong blush, and poked his cheek until he faced forward again, still watching her out of the corner of his eye.

"For the chocolate," she whispered, then pressed a quick peck to his cheek and bolted away, back into the house. _Why does my chest feel funny now? I _must_ be getting sick!_

Fang stayed frozen on the roof even as the sunlight faded. He figured that in the dark, no one could see him blush.

* * *

**And after I finished this, I figured that if Fang was that forward (because for Fang, that was CRAZY forward), and Max had the "avian stomach virus" for Fang, they would have gotten together a lot faster... But hey, this was cute. :) I hope you liked!**


	60. Retake: Happy Tears

**If it's not clear in the story, this is an AU. Max is in college, and Nudge is fifteen.**

* * *

**Happy Tears **– (n.) – I be bawling all over you

Max anxiously waited a few seconds before knocking on Nudge's door again. Her adopted little sister, who was really named Monique, had just finished her first semester of freshman year – but more importantly, she had just been dumped by her boyfriend of one month.

Max personally hadn't liked the look of this Gary kid from the start, although this could have to do more with Gary being a fifteen-year-old boy just hitting puberty and not a cool and collected nineteen-year-old, like Max's crush, Fang. However, Gary had made Nudge happy, and Max would never get in the way of her little sister's happiness, even if it meant that Nudge wouldn't stop singing.

Now that Gary had dumped Nudge, though, Max was free to pound the little freshman as soon as she made sure Nudge was alright, and not sobbing her eyes out. Max knocked on the door again, starting to worry.

"Nudge? Nudge, angel, are you okay in there?"

Max jumped when Nudge's door opened with a bang, and immediately reached for her sister when she saw tears dripping down Nudge's cheeks. "Oh, Nudge, I'm so sorry…"

"What?" Nudge grinned at her, still sniffling. "Oh, you mean the breakup? That's fine, Max!"

Max hesitated. "Then why are you crying, Nudge?"

"Oh, Max," Nudge sighed. "Now that I'm single again, I've realized just how many attractive boys there are out there. Boys that I am now free to date! Max, these are happy tears!"

Max blinked slowly, and backed away from her boy-crazy sister. "As long as you're happy, sweetie."

* * *

**And because I don't want the other characters to feel left out, Iggy is Fang's best friend in college, Fang has had a crush on Max longer than Max has had a crush on him, Gazzy is Iggy's little brother and is in middle school, and...Angel doesn't exist. But I had Max call Nudge 'angel' as a pet name to make up for it?**


	61. Retake: Sing

**...Erm, since you guys were interested in the AU-verse I made last drabble, I decided to make a drabble about Max and Fang secretly crushing on each other in college. It was SUPPOSED to be Fang in the back row secretly staring at Max in class and denying that she would ever like him to Iggy, and a cut-scene of Max telling her friend that she was crazy about Fang but he would never like her...**

**It turned into this one-shot. Why? Because I started with Iggy. And when you start with Iggy, all your plans just explode.**

* * *

**Sing – **(v.) Because there is no other way to express your love

Iggy cheerfully unbuttoned the top few buttons of his light blue shirt – _it complimented his eyes so well –_ and rolled up the sleeves casually to display his black-and-white checkered watch – _deliberately selected to hint at his fun, playful side_! He ever so carefully untucked part of his shirt – _so he could look easy-going but not disrespectful - _and tugged his jeans just a little lower on his hips so if he raised his arms all the girls could catch a glimpse of the yellow rubber duckies on his boxers – _because the ladies love a man with rubber ducky boxers!_ Iggy's daily ritual of changing from a "role-model for his little brother Gazzy" to "fun and single college boy looking for a fun time!" was nearly complete. _Nearly._

With utmost concentration, Iggy pulled a few strands of hair onto his forehead, and then vigorously rubbed the rest of it. He turned a little to the left, then the right, and winked at his reflection. _Oh, Igster, the tousled look is so you!_

After checking his watch to make sure he was a few minutes late for class, Iggy finally left the boy's bathroom, giving a jaunty wave to the small line of boys he had forced to wait outside while he made himself fabulous.

~!~

Iggy opened the door to English 101 with a bang, paused for a moment for dramatic effect, and strode toward the middle-aged teacher. He stopped right in front of her, using his most charming grin as he mentally wincing at her strict bun and no-nonsense glasses as he pulled a white rose out of his pocket and laid it on the book she had opened on the podium.

"For you," Iggy winked, then headed straight for the empty seat next to his best-friend-since-middle-school, Fang, in the very back row. He tried his best not to look too pleased at the shocked expressions of nearly all his classmates as they followed him with a comical turning of heads, but Iggy did love being the center of attention.

He slid casually into his seat, winking at the few girls and guys (he was straight, but he didn't like to discriminate) that continued to stare at him even after the teacher began her lecture, completely ignoring Iggy's marvelous entrance. Iggy pouted in her direction as she threw his rose into the small wastebasket next to her podium without even a glance in his direction. _Roses aren't that cheap! Whatever, she'll totally fish it out of the garbage when she thinks no one's looking, nobody can resist _my _charms._

Fang sighed as he slid Iggy's books over to him – _because it's hard to make a dramatic entrance while holding books_ – already used to Iggy's crazy flair. "Ig, I see why you're a theatre major. But must you really enter _every single class _like this?"

Iggy rolled his eyes at his friend's inability to understand Iggy's utter brilliance as he cracked open their current piece of literature. "Not _every class_, Fang! Just the new classes we have this semester! If I did _every _class, then I'd be repeating what I did for some classes, and that's just lame."

Fang mumbled something mysteriously like "Dear god, do you think you're cool then?" but Iggy let it slide, because there was absolutely no way Fang could have said that. _I am crazy cool! I'm so cool I could freeze the sun!_ Iggy immersed himself in the lecture (English was one of his favorite classes), but when Fang kept forgetting to turn the pages of his book when the teacher said to, Iggy cast him a concerned glance.

_Ah, so that's the problem._ _Aw, poor little Fangy is smitten. _Iggy grinned when he saw that Fang was completely ignoring the teacher in favor of gazing at the girl sitting two rows in front of them, nicknamed Maximum Ride as per the college's tradition. Iggy and Fang had met her during the freshman orientation, and Ig had pegged her almost immediately as the independent tough girl who was soft and sweet on the inside – _exactly_ Fang's type.

He nudged Fang in the arm, biting the inside of his cheek to keep from laughing when Fang jumped and looked at him with startled eyes. "You know, Fang, you've had a crush on this Max chick since last semester…don't you think it's time you made a move?"

"Shut up, Ig." Fang stared down at his book with an air of extreme concentration, even though he was a full chapter behind the lesson, and Iggy could see a faint blush on his cheeks.

Iggy shook his head with a fond smile and turned back to his own book. _Fang's so cute when he's bashful. It's up to me to get those two together!_

~!~

"JJ, seriously, lay off!" Max flung a pillow off her bed at her roommate, glaring halfheartedly. "There's no way Fang likes me, he's just so…"

"So what, Max?" JJ teased, tossing the pillow back. "Oh, no, wait, you've already told me! He's charming, and kind, and so cool and collected, and tall and dark and handsome, and he's so good to his friends, and his _eyes_, his _eyes_ are gorgeous, and let's not get started on his _hair!_"

"Ugh! Shut up already!"

Iggy stepped away from the door of Max's room, happily tossing the cup he had used to better hear the girls' conversation from hand to hand. "Thanks, Betty, that's exactly what I needed to hear." He gave the innocent, naïve girl who had led him to Max's room a quick peck on the cheek, then walked away as Betty swooned behind him. _Operation Fang and Max is a go._

_~!~_

JJ closed her locker and jumped when a male hand shot out and planted itself beside her head. She spun around, ready to give the guy a piece of her mind for attempting to crowd into her, _the prick_, but her jaw dropped when she found herself face-to-face with James Levint, nicknamed Iggy, a star in the theatre department and one of the cutest boys in freshman year.

"We need to talk."

JJ closed her mouth with a click and nodded slowly, staring into Iggy's mesmerizing blue eyes…_such pretty eyes…_

~!~

"Wait, so all you want is to get Max and Fang together?" JJ queried, taking another sip of her latte and resolutely not allowing herself to be mesmerized by the blueness of her companion's eyes again. Her daydreaming had allowed Iggy to ramble for nearly an hour now describing love with various metaphors, and she vaguely remembered hearing something about a toaster….

"In a nutshell, yes." Iggy grinned at her, and JJ was nearly blinded by the charm. _I need to focus, this is for Max!_

"What's the plan?"

Iggy leaned forward conspiratorially, but JJ simply raised an eyebrow and he leaned back, pouted at her a bit for ruining his fun. _Sorry Iggy, but I don't want to get too close and get distracted by your eyes…._

"Not many know this, but Fang is a phenomenal singer. I say we have him serenade her."

JJ gaped. _That's not even a remotely normal way of going about this…_ "What?! How are you going to get him to serenade her?"

"Karaoke is his greatest weakness! We get Fang in one of those private karaoke machines, get him singing a love song, tell Max that's he's singing it to her, and then she can drop in through the vents and they'll be together forever!" Iggy looked so happy that JJ hated to pop his bubble, but…

"Iggy. Why the hell would she drop in through the vents when there's a door? And Max would know immediately that Fang's singing karaoke. And Fang would probably stop singing if Max walked in, because I doubt that he'd be comfortable confessing in song if he's not comfortable confessing at all." JJ sighed and took a fortifying sip of coffee. She may have had a slight crush on Iggy because of his good looks and attitude, but it was quickly dissolving as she realized that he was such an _idiot…. Max was right, Fang is a great friend if he puts up with this on a regular basis._

Iggy pouted, but JJ just stared levelly back until he dramatically threw his hands up. "Fine! You win! What do you propose we do, then?"

JJ smiled slowly. "We do this the old-school way."

~!~

"Step inside, Fang!" Iggy beamed at his raven-haired friend. _This is all for your happiness, Fang! You'll thank me later!_

"Iggy, why do you want me to 'step inside' a janitor's closet? Aren't these supposed to be locked, anyway?" Fang's dark eyes bored into his.

Iggy shifted nervously. He could never lie when Fang stared him down. "I may have lifted the key off the janitor, but it was for a good cause! Just step inside, Fang!"

"Fine, fine," Fang shook his head at his friend's insanity, and went inside the closet. It was better to just go along with what Iggy wanted sometimes, and Fang was a bit curious as to what this was all about. "Now what?"

"Stay right there!" Iggy shouted. "Operation Phase 1 complete!"

"JJ, where the heck are we going?" Max's voice floated down the hall, and Fang froze. Then he tried to bolt out of the closet, but it was too late, Iggy had pushed him further into the closet and clapped a hand over Fang's mouth to keep him quiet.

"We're almost there, Max!" JJ said, and two seconds later Max's body slammed into Fang's as Iggy quickly moved out of the way, closing the closet door while the two future lovebirds were stunned. He quickly fished out the key to the closet from his pocket and locked the door just in time; the handle started jiggling as they tried to get out of the closet.

Iggy ignored Max's angry "What the hell!" and Fang's ominous "Iggy, I'm going to kill you…" in favor of grinning at JJ and saying "Operation Phase 2 and 3 complete! Would you like to do the honors of finishing Phase 4, my lady?"

JJ grinned back, allowing herself to participate in Iggy's idiocy. "Why, it would be my pleasure, my lord!" She then turned to the closet door and shouted, "Fang, Max has a crush on you! Like, a major crush! She's been talking about you non-stop since November!"

All the rattling and angry muttering from the closet suddenly stopped, and Iggy took advantage of the silence to shout, "Max! Fang's crazy in love with you! I even have a recorded confession!"

JJ turned to him. "What? Iggy, that's kind of creepy…"

Iggy blushed a little. "It was an accident! I was sneakily recording Fang singing because he never lets me record him normally, and then he told me about it!" Iggy defended. "I was unprepared! It was an accident!"

"Iggy," Fang said from the closet. "I knew about that. I already deleted it."

"What!" Iggy whipped out his phone and checked his list of recordings. Fang was right, that recording – and all the others Iggy had stealthily made of Fang singing – had disappeared.

"Faaaang! You suck!" Iggy whined.

Max called out, "JJ, when are you gonna let us out of here?"

"Only once you've confessed your true feelings to each other!"

There was a dull thump, and Iggy cautiously asked, "What was that?"

"That was Max banging her head on the door, Ig," Fang replied. "You guys realize that you just confessed _for_ us, right?"

Iggy and JJ looked at each other. _He's right…._

"Oops?" JJ said. "I guess we have to let them out now…"

Iggy paled. "NO! Fang's gonna kill me when he gets out!" He bolted away from the closet, still clutching the key, and JJ stared after him in shock.

"Did he just-" Max began.

"Run off like a freaking five-year-old?" JJ growled. "Yes, yes he did."

She could hear Fang sigh as she prepared herself to run after her _idiot_ of a conspirator. "Check his dorm room, my dorm room, and the courtyard next to the Science building. Oh, and Betty's room, she's got a huge crush on Ig."

"Got it! I'll be back soon!" JJ raced after the blond.

~!~

Fang and Max glanced at each other in the dim light of the janitor's closet.

"Looks like we'll be here for a while…" Fang murmured, blushing slightly.

"Yeah…" Max awkwardly shifted, her face still bright red from JJ's declaration on her behalf.

Fang reached up and ruffled his hair, a nervous habit. "After your friend forces Ig to unlock us…would you- would you like to go out? For lunch?"

He was only watching Max out of the corner of his eye, but he was pretty sure he saw her smile, even though she was still bright red and not looking at him either. Her hand lightly grasped his, and he interlocked their fingers.

"Yeah, I'd like that. I'd like that a lot."

* * *

***Sigh* Why is it that when I try to write some Fax, Iggy ends up getting half of the one-shot all to himself? It's his fault this turned into a 2,400 word chapter. -_- This will probably be the last for this AU, but if you really want some more, just let me know!**


	62. Retake: Beam

**I will finish this fic. Eventually.**

* * *

**Beam **– (v.) kids nowadays….

Max gaped in horror as Nudge finally finished her lecture and placed the condoms on Max's countertop.

"Well, Max," Nudge beamed. "I hope that this will help you finally get laid! Lord knows Fang needs to loosen up, and, as the statistics I've just told you about have shown, sex is the easiest way to get a guy to relax!"

Nudge then skipped out of Max's apartment as the older girl desperately tried to remember any pure memory of her little sister as a sweet innocent little eleven-year-old. Unfortunately, all such memories had been tainted by what had to be the most embarrassing moments in her life.

Max, although rather stunned (she wasn't sure whether she was more surprised that Nudge had actually given her a pretty in-depth Sex Talk or that Nudge had just assumed that she had a chaste relationship with her boyfriend), still had the presence of mind to snag the condoms as she headed back to her bedroom. She and Fang _were_ running out….

* * *

**Nudge is such a caring sister.**


	63. Retake: Sigh

**I wonder if anyone is still reading this? If so, hey!**

* * *

**Sigh – **(v.) to take a deep breath and then let it all out

"Max…"

"No."

Iggy heaved a dramatic sigh. "But, Max…"

"Absolutely not, Iggy."

Iggy gave another long, pained sigh as Fang entered the kitchen. Iggy sighed again, even louder, and Fang raised a questioning eyebrow.

Max didn't look up from her novel. "I don't even know what he's asking for, but he's not gonna get it."

* * *

**As always, some quality Iggy time to warm up. ;)**


	64. Retake: Breathe Easy

**This is some complicated AU verse... If something's unclear, let me know!**

**Breathe Easy** – (v.) the future will be stressful, too

Max pulled Nudge into her room, even as the younger girl complained.

"Max! I know you're not supposed to use the Internet alone, what with viruses sucking people into cyperspace and all, but why can't you just, like, stop using the computer?" Nudge moaned, grimacing as she got a good look at her half-straightened, half-curly hair in the mirror on Max's wall. "And why me? Anyone within a five foot radius works, right? All you need is for there to be too much organic matter or whatever nearby so it screws up the virus. Why don't you just buy some plants?"

"Just for ten minutes, Nudge, promise!" Max let go of Nudge's hand to log onto her computer, not noticing as Nudge stepped closer to the mirror. There was no one within a five foot radius of the computer, and the viruses of the future were always lying in wait.

Max's first thought upon opening her eyes was, _Dang, there's a lot of open space in cyberspace._

Her second thought was, _Who the hell is holding my hand and why is he so hot?_

As she forced herself into a sitting position, the boy (who had actually been holding her wrist and checking for a pulse) moved away a little, giving her some space to breathe, which was becoming much easier. She took a moment to look him over, since she could tell he was doing the same thing with her – dark hair, dark eyes, tan skin.

She had a thing for Hispanic boys.

He raised an eyebrow at her obvious staring, and she could help grinning at the hint of a smirk pulling at his lips. Max was determined to get out of this place as soon as possible, but she had a feeling this little jaunt through cyberspace could be fun.

* * *

**And in my head, Max and Fang have to trek across cyberspace to reach the super-computer in the Capital, which is the only processor large enough to allow things - and humans - to exit cyberspace once they've been lost. Fang's parents had placed him in cyberspace ten years ago because he had a then-terminal disease, and he could stay alive in cyberspace...of course, there's no passing of time in cyberspace, so Fang hasn't gotten older. **

**So, yeah, definitely AU!**


	65. Retake: Wink

**Yo! Lol, so many of you reviewed and told me to write a fic out of the last drabble...remember that impossibly long hiatus this fic went through? I would hate to start a chapter fic and stop partway like that. XD I'll write a chappie fic when I'm sure I won't suddenly stop writing.**

* * *

**Wink – **(v.) a way to say Hey there, I'm madly in love with you

Gazzy took a few deep breathes, clutching the edges of his desk to make his hands stop shaking. _Okay, I can do this,_ he nervously thought to himself, although his mental pep talk was not as convincing as he had hoped. _Iggy told me exactly what to do, it's easy enough! I just need to make eye contact and wink! And Bam, Sarah McKaniegh, cutest girl in my class, will know I'm interested and we'll get married and be in love forever, just like Ig said!_

After a few more minutes of reminding himself of the flawlessness of this plan, Gazzy finally felt calm enough to follow through. He lifted his head – still gripped the desk so hard his knuckles were white – and stared intently at Sarah. She was perched on a desk near the front of the room, laughing with her friends. He admired the way her chestnut locks shone in the room's fluorescent lights, and how she nearly sparkled when she laughed for a few minutes until she _finally_ glanced his way.

_This was it! _Too excited to be nervous now, Gazzy immediately set the plan into action and winked at her. _Wait…winks are only with one eye. _Flushing slightly under Sarah's confused gaze, Gazzy attempted to wink again – but both his eyes kept closing! _Iggy, what do I do!_ They hadn't made a backup plan, so convinced were they of this plan's perfection, so Gazzy miserably decided to keep trying. Maybe he'd get lucky and actually wink at her so they could fall in love forever?

Sarah stared at the new transfer student, bewildered, as he somehow lost control of his eyelids. "Megan," she whispered to her best friend, "why does Zephyr keep blinking at me?"

* * *

**I...I kind of really like this one. People who can't wink are oddities. XD**


	66. Retake: Gasp

**Gasp – **(v.) deep breath

She knows she's dreaming, she knows it, because she can breathe underwater now, but she's still afraid in her dream as she sinks down down down into the cool water. And she can see the luminous blue of the water, and her blond hair trailing around her face, and she knows she's dreaming because these kinds of colors don't exist in the real world. But she doesn't want to drown, so she tries to kick, but no matter how much she tries to swim, to move, but she _can't_ and she's scared, she's terrified, even though everything is calm and empty in her dream ocean. And she's sinking and she can't stop it and there's no one to help her and she will drown and she _can't do anything about it-_

Angel awakes with a small gasp, feeling as if this is her first taste of air even though she _knows _it was a dream. She picks up her pillow and practically runs across the hall to Max's room. Normally she'd think her behavior was too childish and that she should handle this like a grown-up, but Angel is _scared_ and she doesn't know anyone else who can protect her. She slides under the comforter and curls up next to Max, squeezing her eyes shut and thinking _Please don't make me leave_ when Max startles awake, saying "Wha- Angel? Are you okay?"

Angel tries to fake slumber for a few tense seconds, hoping that Max will let her stay without asking questions. She's still a little surprised when Max simply pulls Angel closer and lies down to sleep. Angel waits a few minutes for Max's breathing to even out, and for the memories of her nightmare to fade away, before she tries to fall back asleep. Max is warm behind her, and the hand resting gently on Angel's arm seems protective, like Max wants to protect Angel even from her dreams.

Angel suddenly feels like crying.

She had forgotten what it felt like to be safe.

* * *

**Erm, yeah. This is set in whatever book Angel decides that she's grown up and doesn't need Max anymore. What do you guys think?**


End file.
